Beginning of Forever
by Compgirl21
Summary: Chelsea knew there would be obstacles to overcome as a rancher. But there are a few issues concerning the island's animal dealer she hadn't anticipated.
1. Preface

_Prologue_

_2 weeks ago_

"This is the last call for passengers. Last call," the announcer's dull voice announced over the crummy speaker attached to the intercom of the boat.

Anyone could tell it was cheap; the voice was fuzzy and difficult to understand. As I hurried down the dock, the sun beat down in the sun, and sweat beaded on my forehead, and I was grateful I had my beloved red bandana to keep my unruly chestnut hair out of my face.

I was on the boat just as the bored announcer was finished speaking. An attendant came by to check my ticket, and when he was sure I hadn't snuck on, he nodded at me and sauntered away. I grasped my knees for support as the boat started to drift away from the dock. It had been close, but I had made it.

I leaned against the railing for a minute to slow my breathing and allow my heart to return to its regular pace. I wiped the sweat from my forehead before turning to stare at the city, drifting farther and farther away with each passing second. It was a relief to get away from the hustle and bustle, if only for two days.

I didn't have nearly enough money saved up for a real vacation, so a short boat ride was all I could afford. This had depressed me at first; I wasn't going to Florida, Los Angeles or even Seattle anytime soon. Still, I had worked long and hard these past two years of my life, for which I was proud.

Not many kids leave their house at the age of eighteen, but I had done it. And somehow, I managed to survive by working long shifts as a waitress at the restaurant. My apartment was crummy, and I was a horrible cook, so for a while I lived off McDonald's dollar menu.

Thankfully before I left home I had a membership card at the gym, so I managed to stay slim and

fit between the long work hours. I wasn't going to be a waitress for the rest of my life, but getting a much better paying job would require going back to school, something I was not so eager to do.

I pushed the thoughts away, and stared at the sea, glittering in the sunlight. I had lived in the city all my life, with occasional trips to the country, and from my first visit on I knew it was where I belonged.

I loved the country, the wide open space; I felt boxed in with all these towering buildings here in the city. When I left home, my first plan was to head to the countryside, but somehow I ended up picking up the paper and looking at apartments for rent. I saw one I could afford that didn't sound very bad, so I went to look at it.

The next thing I knew, I was moving in. I regretted being so impulsive now, as I wasn't really happy, but as long as I was making enough to get by, why did that matter? My life was nothing but endless stress and anxiety, and to say I was sick of it would be an extreme understatement.

The work and unease was beginning to take its toll; dark purple shadows lingered under my eyes and I looked tired all the time, much older than my twenty years. If someone glanced at me for a second, they might guess I was thirty.

I shuddered and buried my hands in my pockets. This boat certainly wasn't very large, at least not when compared to others, but it contained a small dining area, an observation room that allowed you stare at the water from indoors, a couple bathrooms, a kitchen, and four miniature bedrooms; it was rickety and elderly-looking, and all this 'vacation' did was take you out into the sea, far out of sight of the city's bright lights, sailed around the water for two days, and then took you back.

But the boat was jammed with supplies to make the guests comfortable and relaxed. And I had promised myself that I would relax for these two days, and I was going to honor that promise. I recovered quickly from my run and placed my hands on both straps of the rucksack on my shoulders.

It didn't contain much; just a flashlight, my scruffy old wallet, a book, a couple hair-clips, underwear, pants and two shirts. I cursed myself for forgetting my extra bandana; this one was going to get dirty eventually; and I just didn't seem like myself if I wasn't wearing it.

Of my possessions, I was going to have to watch my wallet the most closely, of course; it contained $500, a large sum in my eyes. Of course, I might just paranoid; the kindest people in the world could be on this boat with me.

But then again, who knew? I stayed out on the dock for another fifteen minutes, admiring the water, but after the city disappeared from view entirely, I went below deck to see my fellow passengers. I had heard there were only four other people (aside from the staff) here with me, an alarmingly small amount of people.

_Well, _I thought wryly, _only a couple of people would by a 'vacation' this crappy, I guess._

If they weren't in the observation room or the dining area, they had to be in their rooms, and I wasn't going to bother meeting them today if that was the case. Though I was generally happy and very social, I was in a bit of a bad mood.

As I started below deck, I was kind of hoping no one was around, but it was a vain hope. There was no one in the dining area, which wasn't a surprise, considering it was three in the afternoon and there wasn't anything particularly interesting to see in here.

The dull white walls weren't exactly a funfest. The only thing remotely interesting to me was a large potted plant in the corner, but when I went to examine it, I found it was plastic.

_Too lazy to take care of a real plant, _I thought bitterly.

I loved gardening, and didn't believe in fake plants. I sighed. Before I actually went into the observation room, I decided it was best to peak in to see if anyone was there first. If there were people there, I would make sure I was my happy and bright self.

No sense in making a bad impression if I'm with these people for two days. I peaked around the corner. The window took up half the wall, offering a pretty view of the water and the sky above. In front of that sat two large sofas and two long coffee tables. I almost groaned. There were people in this room.

They were sitting on opposite couches, but they looked so similar they had to be brother and sister. They both appeared to be about my age, the girl maybe eighteen or nineteen, the boy probably twenty. The girl wore a plain long black skirt and a white t-shirt with black tennis shoes.

Her headband held her red hair back, and she had a bored expression on her face as she stared at the waves. The boy also had red hair, and sitting in the bridge of his nose were large glasses, in front of big brown eyes. He was slim and about my height, but he was kind of cute in a nerdish way.

His wardrobe could definitely use some correcting; he was wearing some kind of odd green apron. On the coffee table in front of him rested a large coffee cup, filled to the brim with some steaming liquid.

The boy reached out and grabbed the cup, but as he was pulling it up to his lips, his hand somehow slipped, and the coffee spilled out all over the dark carpet.

"Oops," he said in a voice that was somewhat high for a boy.

His sister glanced over at him with annoyance. "Jeez, Elliot. Can't you do _anything _without making a mistake?" she snapped.

The boy named Elliot cringed away from her as if she had slapped him. "You don't have to be so malicious, Natalie; it was just a mistake."

"You're awkward and clumsy," the redheaded girl named Natalie said, rolling her eyes. "Sometimes I could swear you were adopted. I refuse to believe I'm directly related to you."

Elliot didn't reply, but he stood up, presumably on his way to the little kitchen for something to clean up the mess. I stepped into the room before they noticed me peaking around the corner and spying on them.

"Hello," I said in a forced enthusiastic voice.

Natalie glanced at me, bored.

Her brother was much more welcoming. "Oh hello, you must be the extra passenger."

What was that supposed to mean? He must know everyone else on this boat. I sighed. Leave it to me to pick the boat where I would be the outsider.

"Yes, I am. My name is Chelsea; it's nice to meet you."

"I'm Elliot, and this is my sister, Natalie," Elliot said warmly.

When I smiled at him again, it was genuine. He seemed much nicer than his sister, even if he was a nerd. His glasses sat crookedly on his nose, and that weird apron was wrinkled, but I could appreciate his friendliness. I glanced at the stained carpet.

"Spill something?" I asked, though of course I knew the answer.

His cheeks reddened and he shrugged in embarrassment. Natalie rose to her feet; she was just a hair taller than me.

"You'll have to forgive my brother. He's very inept," she said matter-of-factly.

"That's enough now, Natalie," Elliot said, but his voice was small.

His sister shrugged and turned to me, her expression becoming happier. "The other two people on this boat are my mother and my grandfather, but they're in their rooms right now. You'll see them at dinner."

_Great, _I thought, _Stuck on a boat with two oldies and their argumentative kids. _

When did I become so bitter? I questioned my earlier judgment about this only being a bad mood. If I really thought about it, I had actually been like this for quite some time. What if I was starting to become this way permanently?

Elliot interrupted my thoughts. "Excuse me," he said politely, hurrying past me on his way to the kitchen.

Natalie watched him go and shook her head once. Then she looked at me again and smiled.

"So, Chelsea, what brought you onto this thing?" She asked, slapping the white wall once.

I shrugged. My bandana was starting to fall over my eyes, so I pushed it back.

"Just needed to get away from the city and my life for a while, I guess." I answered honestly.

She laughed. "Understandable."

"Um." I shifted uncomfortably. "I want to see my room."

She nodded. "Just an FYI, they isn't much to look at. See you at dinner."

I sighed. "I wasn't expecting them to be," I said sardonically. "See you, Natalie."

I wanted to ask her to be nicer to her brother, but of course it was none of my business. I walked down the narrow hallway and entered my pint sized room, complete with an old bed, a small nightstand with two drawers, a lamp, and a rug.

The bathroom was at the very end of the hall; all four of us had to share it. The other bathroom was located in the last bedroom, the one where the staff slept. Natalie was right; the room wasn't much.

But there was a window, so I did get to see the water. I always slept soundly when there was rain pounding against my window, so I figured it wouldn't be much different with waves crashing together. I hadn't been a boat in a while; the constant rocking was making me a little uncomfortable, but I was confident I wouldn't be sick.

I had three hours to kill before dinner, so I watched the water and relaxed on the twin bed for a long time, thinking about absolutely nothing, just feeling the boat rock and listening to the waves.

When I had been lying there for about fifteen minutes, however, I noticed a sound that hadn't been there before. When I opened my eyes, there was a light rain splattering against my window, which I thought was odd, for the weather channel had predicted no such outcome. I shrugged it off, assuming it would stop soon, and listened to the pattering.

After a while, though, I started to get bored, because I was the type of person who liked having something to do all the time. So I pulled out my book and read for a couple hours. Finally, my watch told me it was nearly six o' clock, so I set my book on the bed and left the rucksack in my room. I took the wallet out and hid it behind the nightstand.

One couldn't be too careful with money. I passed one of the three staff on the boat with us, and he was on his way to the kitchen.

"Going to the dining room I presume, Miss?" he asked me, his voice thick with some accent I didn't recognize.

"Yes," I replied.

He nodded once and hurried away. When I entered the dining area, everyone was already there. There was one seat that was empty in between Elliot and Natalie. When he saw me, Elliot patted the seat next to him and grinned broadly. I hoped he didn't think I was interesting in him romantically.

He was a little cute, but definitely not my type. Natalie smiled and me, too. The table was small and round. I found myself sitting across from a very short old man with a white mustache and very thick eyebrows. His beady eyes zoned in on me and he smiled at me, showing yellow-tinted teeth.

"Hello, Missy, you must be the other passenger," he said in a hoarse, elderly voice.

He didn't seem unfriendly, but I felt a little uncomfortable under his gaze.

"Yes," I managed to say, "I'm Chelsea."

"How lovely to meet you, dear," a woman's voice said.

To the left of the elderly man sat a middle aged woman with the same red hair as Elliot and Natalie; this had to be their mother. She was pretty for her age, and her smile was so warm it was easy to see where Elliot had gotten his friendly personality.

I nodded and couldn't help smiling back.

"My name is Felicia; Elliot told me that he and Natalie already met you earlier this afternoon. This is my father Taro. Natalie and Elliot are my children, if you haven't already guessed."

"Natalie told me that her mother was here," I said sociably, ordering myself to be more like my normal self.

Felicia nodded just as the staff member I had bumped into in the hall came out of the kitchen.

"Everyone here?" he asked in his accented voice.

Taro blinked. "What was that, sonny?" he asked.

"Turn on your hearing aid, grandpa," Natalie suggested.

Taro took her advice.

We received menus, and there were surprisingly a lot of options. I ordered a garden salad and spaghetti with steamed vegetables. Elliot winced when I ordered milk as a beverage.

"What? You don't like milk?" I asked curiously.

He shuddered. "No. I _hate _milk," he almost spit.

I blinked at him. He made it sound like I had just ordered poison and announced I was going to drink it here on this boat.

I shrugged and looked over at Natalie, who said promptly, "He's a weirdo, I know."

I refrained from giggling, since Elliot looked dejected for a few minutes. I got him out of his flunk by asking him what he _did _like, and he started to list things out for me. We conversed all through dinner, and it came to my attention that Taro was a very knowledgeable man; he seemed to know the answer to every question I asked him, especially ones about farming.

"Were you a farmer previously?" I asked inquiringly.

He nodded. "Used to be a rancher myself, back in the good old days, yes siree. Made good money from my work, until I had to retire years ago."

I nodded respectfully. Though he knew a lot of things, occasionally someone who ask a question he _didn't _know the answer to, and he would quickly change the subject.

Natalie giggled softly and whispered to me, "Grandpa knows a lot of things, but he hates it when people start going on about things he doesn't know. He'll either change the subject or make something up."

She laughed softly again before digging into vegetable soup. I chuckled softly to myself too; Natalie might be mean to her brother, but other than that, she seemed like the type of person I could easily be friends with.

At some point in the conversation, Taro announced that his eyebrows were telling him there would be a storm tonight. I pondered asking him how his eyebrows could tell him anything – mine were certainly quiet. But Taro, although he was wise, was also turning out to be a rather strange old man, and for a minute I wondered if his eyebrows actually did tell him things.

I wanted to laugh at myself afterwards. Natalie rolled her eyes again.

"Not tonight there isn't, gramps. It's just a little rain; it'll clear up."

I nodded, but Taro's worried glances at the windows made me assume he wasn't convinced. I had to admit, the rain _had _become a lot heavier since I'd left my room. I didn't think about it for long; the idea frightened me. This boat certainly was little, no match for the powerful waves of the ocean, and we were far from the city . . .

I shuddered and focused on other things. The little group turned out to be quite interesting, and I was ashamed for assuming the worst of them in the beginning. We talked until nine thirty, and then Taro declared it was well past his bedtime.

Natalie walked by my side as we headed back to our rooms. "He usually goes to bed at, like, seven thirty," she snickered.

I smiled at her and rolled my eyes. She was sharing a room with her mother; it was right next to mine. Across from hers was the room Elliot and Taro were sharing. Farther down the hall was the room for the staff; I assumed they were still cleaning up in the kitchen.

Taro disappeared into the room before anyone else; Elliot paused to smile wryly and say "You're lucky you don't have to sleep in the same room as someone who snores" before closing the door behind him.

"Goodnight, dear," Felicia said softly before she and Natalie went into their shared room.

I said a quiet goodnight after them and the door clicked behind me. I stood by the door for a minute, debating whether or not to lock it, but my fellow passengers had all been so kind. Natalie certainly had a tough exterior, but she was nice enough to me, funny even.

I tried to picture Elliot or Felicia stealing something and found I was unable to do so. And Taro . . . well, I didn't think he would take anything of mine, either. Though I had felt uncomfortable around him at first, the feeling had quickly melted away, with intrigue and curiosity taking its place.

That left the staff. I wasn't sure about them, but I finally sighed and went to stand next to my bed without locking the door, sick of my paranoia. The rain was pounding furiously against the glass of my window now, and by the rough way the boat was rocking I could tell Taro was going to be right about the storm.

A knot of fear rose up inside me again, but I had always been good at repressing horrible thoughts, in the past, present or future. So I went to bed without another thought about the storm. Instead, I thought of the little family I had met tonight and how likable they all were.

I wondered briefly what it would be like to have a family of my own, with a husband and kids and grandkids much farther in the future. I didn't dwell on this for long; I was only twenty years old, and there were a lot of things in my life I wanted to do before I even thought about marrying someone.

So to get away from that venue of thought, I started daydreaming about the country, grassy hills and rich farmlands. I wanted to have something like that someday. But with the money I possessed that particular dream was _very _far in the future. I sighed in frustration.

I had no idea what I was going to do with my life.


	2. Islanders

**Disclaimer: Havest Moon isn't mine **

**1. Islanders**

That was two weeks ago. It was strange, when I looked back now, and I saw how one simple boat trip would change my life forever. I was still wondering if it was a good change or not, but the answer to that question would come with the passing of time.

I now sat on Natalie's bed in her newly-built house. The construction was definitely questionable; someone with building experience would have to come fix it up sooner or later. But for now, the tiny house was fine and cozy. Natalie stood in front of me, gazing at her pile of books, looking at each of the titles carefully. "How did you ever manage to get those here?"

I finally asked her, for the silence had gone on long enough. She looked up at me and smiled, fixing her headband so it was just above her bangs. "Well, you know, it's odd. It's seems like every one of us managed to get one thing here; my mother brought these books, my grandfather brought his cane, I brought my pocketknife, Elliot brought his stupid green apron, and you grabbed your rucksack." When I thought about it, it was weird.

But when we had all sprint up to the dock in the dead of night when the storm was raging at its worst, my first thought was to bring my rucksack with me. Just before I had bolted out the door, I remembered my wallet wedged in between the wall and the nightstand and I had zoomed back to snatch it up, stuff it in the pack, and race out onto the dock. Taro had been right about the storm – and it was unlike any storm I had ever been in. The waves tossed the boat everywhere like it was some sort of doll, and the staff were doing everything they could to keep things in order, but it didn't seem to be helping.

They had yelled at all of us to get back to our rooms, but there were only three crewmen. How would they manage this by themselves? "They were soaked, of course – some of the pages' ink was completely smudged and is impossible to read now, but a few are alright – the pages just dried bizarrely," she mused, turning through them slowly. I nodded in agreement; I could hear Felicia busying herself in the kitchen in the next room, and I smelt something cooking, but I couldn't identify what it was.

"It was very nice of you to have me over for dinner," I said politely. Natalie waved the remark away as if it was a bothersome fly in the air. "Well, that old house of yours certainly doesn't have much – you'd be taking bites out of your table if we hadn't asked." I laughed.

"You're probably right," I agreed. Two weeks. It had been two weeks since myself and this bizarre family of four had washed up on this island the day after the almighty storm had terrorized the boat. I still remembered it vividly . . .

_I am dead. I am dead. There is no possible way I can be alive. But if I'm dead, then how am I thinking? That was when I allowed myself to feel the rough surface beneath my left cheek. I ran my hand along it, digging my fingers into it. _

_Slowly, groggily, one of my eyes cracked open and revealed that I was lying on a bed of sand. Sand equals beaches, I realized through the haze in my brain. Slowly, with a low groan, I managed to roll myself onto my back – my muscles were so stiff. _

_\It hurt to move. I found myself staring up at the sun, the very same sun that had been high in the sky the day I had boarded that boat. But as I lay there, my head was clearing, and I was about to get up and look at my surroundings when a short dark shadow loomed over me. I couldn't make out who it was in the glare of the sun and my fuzzy vision, but the voice I recognized so quickly one would think I had known it all my life. "You okay, little missy?" the hoarse voice of Taro asked me._

_Very slowly, I sat up. The world spun for a second, but finally I could see clearly as I ignored the aching moving gave me. My hair had dried in a disgusting way because of the saltwater that had been in it, and I could tell it was stiff as cardboard and sticking up in every direction. _

_"I think so, Taro." My voice sounded strange, even to me. I managed to get to my feet, gripping his skinny shoulder for support. "Careful," he warned me as I swayed dangerously. But I ordered myself not to fall; soon I was steady on my feet. A few feet behind the old man I could see the rest of our little group; Natalie was groaning and stretching, Elliot was sitting on the sand looking dazed, and Felicia had one hand on each of her children, and her lips were moving with speech, but I couldn't make out what she was saying. _

_"C'mon over," Taro said. As we walked, I was surprised he wasn't in worse condition; he was so old, surely his joints and muscles were hurting him a lot more than mine were. But if this was the case, the elderly man didn't show it. When I was by the little group, Natalie threw her arms around me in a tight hug._

_"Oh, Chelsea, everything was so horrible! The storm, the seawater, the rain!" I hadn't thought this tough-as-nails girl knew how to cry, but here she was sobbing into my shoulder like we had known each other for ages. I patted her shoulder awkwardly and tried to soothe her with a soft voice. _

_She finally let go of me and turned to her mother. Elliot seemed too stunned to cry. He blinked several times before rising to his feet and turning to face us. He looked around for a few moments before saying, "It looks like we've washed up on an island." "Gee, figured it out, did you?" Natalie snapped. "Hush now," Felicia scolded. I looked around with sudden concern. "Where's the staff?" Taro sighed unhappily. "I don't know. Seems to me they might not have been as lucky as us," he said somberly._

_I fell silent instantly, pierced by waves of sadness. Felicia bowed her head and closed her eyes. We stood there in silence a minute for the presumed dead before Taro said we should start surveying our surroundings. We hiked north a little ways before we came to the most open space I have ever seen. There was a broken bridge to the west that looked beyond repair, but there was another dirt road leading off into the east, and one heading farther north. "Sure is spacious," Elliot commented. For reasons unknown to ourselves, we decided to go up the northern trail first. What we found shocked us. In this particular part of land, there was a large field to the north of a rickety old house__._

_The dirt was perfect for raising crops, I discovered upon further investigation. Two bare plots of land stood to the north of the field, and to the west a long river snaked to the south from where we had come, which presumably emptied into the ocean._

_Aside from that barren-looking house, there was also a building with two swinging doors, which Taro declared to be a stable. There was one building left, and it was the saddest-looking. Inside the old farmhouse, there was a small table and a twin sized bed, with two windows and a rug at the door. "This place has been abandoned for years," Elliot mused, "It probably used to be a ranch, though." I froze in place. A ranch. A farm. Were my dreams becoming reality? _

_"Well, someone could still live here now," Taro said, his beady eyes examining the land very closely. A sudden thought must have occurred to him, because he snapped his bony fingers. "Chelsea," he began. "Yes?" I asked. He hesitated for a minute, as if choosing his words carefully. "Have you ever given any thought to becoming a rancher, Miss City Girl?" I blinked at him before replying softly, "It's my life's dream." He smiled broadly. "Then maybe you should live here." I stared at the old man in wonderment for a minute, before his words finally sunk in, and I smiled wider than I had in years._

_"Oh really? Really? That would be . . ." I paused, looking for the right word. Incredible? Awesome? Amazing? Fabulous? Nothing seemed to be enough. "Great," I finished lamely. "It's settled, then," Taro said._

_"Hey, wait a minute," Natalie said sharply, "Where will we live?" Taro shrugged. "We'll have to build a place of our own I guess. We can all stay here until the job is done." "But how can Chelsea be a rancher," Elliot intervened, "if there's no one to sell livestock or crops?"_

_He looked around worriedly. "In fact, how will anyone even know we're here? What if we're stuck alone on this island for the rest of our lives?" "That boat ride was completely registered," Felicia said, "If we don't come back, people will start looking for us. And I don't think the boat strayed too far off course . . . this island seems fairly large . . . it's probably very hard to miss." _

_"Yeah," Natalie agreed. She paused. "I wonder why it was abandoned in the first place, though. It seems like such a nice place." Elliot shrugged. "We might never know. But hey, nothing is going to get done if we sit here wondering." _

To my surprise, Taro and Felicia seemed to know more than I ever would have guessed about building. Elliot was clumsy with his work, often dropping or tearing things, and of course these things would not go unnoticed by his sister, who was much more efficient. She complained more often, though, which was almost as irritating as Elliot's incompetence. In one week, they had set up a little house using the island's recourses.

Dinner was some kind of odd root and wild grasses, which for some strange reason were shaped like hearts. Shiitake mushrooms were visible on the other side of the broken up bridge, and if I squinted hard, I was almost sure I could make out a pink-roofed house, which Taro dismissed as nonsense. It was early fall, so the growth of wild mushrooms was unsurprising. "I just hope they find us soon," Natalie sighed.

"I haven't slept in a long time because of Taro's snoring." Indeed, she had did have deep purple shadows under her eyes, and I had to admit I was getting worried; two weeks and still nothing. What if Elliot was right about being stuck here as castaways? I shuddered.

I felt sorry for Natalie, though, and the fact that I had a nice quiet little house made me feel selfish. And I really did like Natalie; that hadn't changed since the boat ride. "Natalie," I said slowly. She glanced up from her withered book in interest.

"My house is so quiet at night. If you really want a good place to sleep, maybe you could stay over at my place tonight." She grinned broadly and jumped up from her seat. "Oh really? That would be so awesome, Chelsea! Thanks! Grandpa! Mom!" she ran off to tell them. At around nine at night, as my watch said (thank heaven it was waterproof), we walked back to my house. I insisted she take the twin bed, as it wasn't big enough for both of us. She argued with me, but I could see the longing in her eyes. It wasn't so terrible to sleep on the floor; Natalie handed me down a blanket and my rucksack made somewhat of a pillow.

It wasn't long before I drifted to sleep, dreaming of healthy livestock and juicy crops . . .

A loud knocking woke me. I groggily rolled over, assuming it was heavy rain at first with my hazy brain. But the knocking sounded again, and it was coming in the direction of the door. Natalie rolled over and muttered something in her sleep, but she didn't wake up. She must be a heavy sleeper. I got to my feet, my body stiff from the hard surface of the floor. Annoyed, I looked at my watch – it was three o' clock in the morning. Who could that possibly be?

"Someone better be dead," I muttered angrily to myself. It was indeed raining, so when I opened the door, the short man standing there was entirely drenched. "Taro! What are you doing here? You'll kill yourself out in this cold." I shivered. The old man had a blanket draped over his shoulders and he was leaning against the old wooden cane he had managed to save from the boat, but he was smiling wider than I had ever seen. "Great news, little missy! We've been found."

He beamed. Suddenly the cold and wet didn't matter anymore, and my grogginess melted away. I was happier than I had been in months – no, years. "Really? _Really?_" I almost sang. I whirled and raced over to Natalie, almost dumping her onto the floor with the way I was poking, prodding and shoving.

"What's the big idea?" she almost groaned, trying to pull the pillow back over her eyes. "We've been found, Nat! They know we're here! We're going to be _fine_!" I was laughing and crying at the same time, something that had never happened to me before. She blinked at me for a second in her grogginess, uncomprehending. But then understanding dawned on her and she was just as excited as I was. She threw the blankets off, grabbed my arm and barreled to the door. We almost ran poor Taro over in our efforts to get around him and head towards the beach, where the rescuers no doubt resided. Taro held up his hands and jumped in the air once to stop us. Natalie and I stopped as he opened his mouth to speak.

But a coughing spasm interrupted him and the old man clutched his stomach. "Let's get him inside," I suggested. Natalie's eyes flickered in the general direction of the beach, but her grandfather came first. We helped him into my little house and sat him on the bed. It took several minutes, but Taro finally cleared his throat and discarded the soaking wet blanket. "They're not here," Taro finally said. Natalie's mouth fell open. "But – but you just said" – "That some people found us. I didn't say they _stayed _here."

His granddaughter blinked at him. "But . . ." "They left us some useful supplies. A _lot _of supplies; it was very kind of them. They offered to take us all back to the city, but I declined the offer," Taro stated matter-of-factly. "But don't you want to go home?" Natalie asked sadly. Taro shook his head. "No. I've been looking for a place to spend the last years of my life, and it's so peaceful here. If you want to go back, young 'un, then so be it.

But rest assured Elliot, your mother and I won't accompany you." "My mother? Elliot? They want to stay, too?" I asked. Taro nodded. Then he began speaking to us again. "The people who found us told me the background history of this island. Said people used to come here all the time, live here even, before it was abandoned because of the violent storms that sometimes hit the place. But they seemed pleased that some people wanted to stay and build the place up again. And we could do it – work hard and build it up. Now that people know we're here and that we're staying, they'll be cargo ships coming by to give us what we need." He paused for a second before looking at me.

"Chelsea, if you want to go back to the city, to your home, no doubt, no one's stopping you. But I wasn't joking when I asked you to be the rancher of this place. This land's perfect for it, and the plots of land up north past field would be perfect for building a barn and chicken coop.

Now, I had written some letters these past two weeks to my friends Mirabelle and Chen. They've both been looking for a place to come set up they're shops and here's the perfect place. There's a chance they'll say no, but I don't think they will. I gave the letters to the man on the rescue boat.

He told me he'd be back with the replies as soon as he could get here. The point is, though, that this place needs a rancher, a money-maker. It's a huge responsibility, perhaps one you're not ready to take on for being so young, but the offer's there." It was the longest speech I'd ever heard the old man make, and for a minute I let what he was telling me sink in. Here was what I had been wanting, dreaming of for so long, handed to me on a silver platter.

But now that I actually had the opportunity, I really had to think. This was a job that would a lifetime to complete. It was a huge decision, but when I thought of the city, of the stupid waitress job and my crappy apartment, I was sure. "I want to do it, Taro. I want to run a ranch." He nodded, pleased with my choice. Natalie was staring out the window, lost in thought. "It is really very nice here," she began. "Not such a bad place to spend the rest of my life."

She chuckled softly. She looked at her grandfather. "How long do you think it'll take to get replies from your friends?" Taro shrugged. "Three, four days maybe, little honey." Taro glanced at me. "Come over to my house in the morning for some supplies, little Missy. You could sure use 'em." I laughed and nodded.

"Natalie, maybe you should come back for the night and help us sort through some things." Natalie nodded eagerly, hugged me goodbye, and followed her grandfather out into the rain. I watched them go. When they were no longer in view, I closed the door and flew back onto my bed. All I could do was smile up at the ceiling like an idiot. I was going to the rancher of this place. And this island was going to be a grand place again.

I was sure of it.


	3. Taro

**Disclaimer: Unfortunately, HM is not mine. **

"They came!" Elliot crowed coming up from behind me in the fields. I looked up and smiled at him, clutching my new watering can.

When I had when to Taro's house four days ago, he had given me a lot of things: a hoe, a sickle, a watering can, a hammer, an axe, food, extra blankets and two small bags of carrot seeds. It was a lot more than I had dared to hope for, but the very next day Taro was at my house at five thirty in the morning, barking instructions on how to use the tools and helping me plant the seeds. It turned out I had quite the knack for planting and watering; I could only hope I had a knack for growing excellent crops.

I had come to realize that Taro was even stranger than I thought; sometimes random information about livestock or crops or something would come to him in the middle of the night and he'd be banging on my door, telling me what he had forgotten previously. I was still annoyed about that, as I found I was a lot more tired lately, but when I had explained this to the elderly man, he had laughed loudly and said I'd better get used to it – ranchers got up early.

I was still grumbling about this fact when I started watering my turnips early this morning. I had just finished up with a now-empty watering can when Elliot walked up behind me. "What came?" I asked as I walked over to the snaking river to re-fill it where Taro had shown me. "The replies to my grandfather's letters," he informed me with a wide grin. He held up to pieces of paper I had only just noticed. I smiled back at him happily as I kneeled down to the fill up the can.

"Judging by your enthusiasm, I'm assuming they both said yes?" I asked. "Yes," he said happily, "Both of them will be here in two days. We walked back over to my house and I set the can down. "Here, you can read them, Chelsea," Elliot said, almost pushing them into my hands. I read the one from Mirabelle first.

_Dearest Taro, _

_This is certainly splendid news. I've been looking everywhere for a place to set up my shop. If the island is as barren as you say it is, I'm assuming it will take a while before it's back in its glory days, but I am a patient woman. I accept your offer and will be at the island in approximately three or so days. I am bringing with me my daughter, Julia, who is just as ambitious and eager to help as me. It will be wonderful to see you again! Thank you for this incredible opportunity. I'm sure the new rancher you told me about will be working very hard for everyone. _

_With love,_

_Mirabelle & Julia _

"Wow, everyone's really counting on me, aren't they?" I murmured nervously as I handed the first paper to Elliot. "Yes, I guess so, but it's nothing you can't handle," he assured me warmly. "Thanks," I muttered, before turning my eyes to Chen's letter.

_Taro, _

_Shipwrecked on a deserted island. What an adventure! I wish something as exciting as that would happen to me. As for your offer, I accept. The city is too loud and obnoxious; and, to be honest, not the best place to raise my beloved son, Charlie. This island you describe sounds perfect; exactly where I have been dreaming of setting up my shop! I'm a bit put-off by the fact it will take some time before the island's population increases again, but I can wait, I suppose. I don't think it will take as long as you seem to be anticipating, my friend, if this new rancher works very hard. I will be there in about two days, with Charlie, of course. I look forward to seeing you and your family. _

_Best wishes, _

_Chen & Charlie _

_PS: It sounds to me like you could use a carpenter, Taro. I happen to know an excellent one named Gannon who's looking for a place to start a business as well. Perhaps I should contact him? _

"Isn't it wonderful? Everything's going according to plan," Elliot said brightly. I nodded and gave him back the other pieces of paper. "Chen's talked about Gannon before," he went on, "From what he's said Gannon is an excellent builder, and he sells lumber and material stone. We could definitely use him around here." I nodded. "Yeah; I don't know anything about building!" I laughed. He chuckled, too.

I walked back over to my field. For the past few days, I had been working on clearing it entirely of weeds and wood and rocks. It was a daunting task, but the field looked so much better and there would be more room for crops and fences for livestock, when the time came. There were five humungous boulders in my field I couldn't do anything about, and I just hoped they wouldn't get in the way too much.

Elliot started helping me when he realized what I was doing, and though I said it wasn't necessary, he insisted. "I don't have anything else to do today; my family and I are going to be in charge of shipping everything you put in your shipping box over there." He jabbed a thumb over his shoulder, pointing to the medium-sized box in front of the house. "Well, I don't think I'll have anything for a while."

He shrugged. "Well, once the carpenter moves in and you've shipped enough stuff, my family and I will finally have enough money to expand our crummy house!" he laughed as he stared pulling at a particularly stubborn weed. We worked for a few minutes before the silence got awkward for me and I asked, "So you already know Chen?"

"Sure. Chen's been my grandfather's friend for a long time. I've never met Mirabelle or Julia before, though, or Charlie." He paused.

"I didn't even know that Chen had a kid up until yesterday. He's only eight, you know." "Chen and Taro must not have spoken in a long time, then," I said.

"Well, they talked on the phone a lot, but no, we didn't see him often, because he lived pretty far from us, in a different city. But he went on for years about how he was sick of the city and he wanted somewhere quiet." "Why didn't he move to the country?"

I asked. Elliot shrugged. "I don't know, I guess his shop was thriving in the city, so he couldn't complain, and he stayed. But it's not doing so well now and is ready to uproot and move to a new place." I nodded.

We made polite small talk on the weather until I announced I was done with this part of the field today. Elliot nodded politely and invited me to dinner, which I declined. "Maybe tomorrow, Elliot," I said, "I'm real tired right now and I just want to go to bed early." He looked really disappointed for a minute and I almost considered coming, but then he said a quiet goodbye and headed back to his house.

That evening was quiet, with more wild grasses and chocolate left by someone from the rescue boat. That was a real treat, and I scarfed it down faster that anyone would think possible. Just as I was about to go to sleep, there was a knock on the door. I groaned and went to open it. It was Natalie. She had a blanket and a pillow rolled up under her left arm with a book in her right hand. "I came for a sleepover," she told me, walking into the house without so much as a question.

I sighed, but allowed her to spend the night. I hadn't had a real good friend in so long, I was willing to try with just about anyone, and Natalie seemed perfectly willing. We talked for two hours, sometimes about sincere, heartfelt things, and other things were genuinely silly, like her brother's clumsiness. "I don't think he'll ever get married," she mused. But then she looked up at me mischievously and smiled.

"What?" I asked cautiously. "You know," she said slowly, "If _you _married him, then you would be my sister-in-law." She giggled.

"Ew!" I groaned, "Don't hold your breath. I like him as a friend and everything, but thinking about him _that _way makes me shudder."

Natalie shrugged. "It was worth a shot." We went to sleep after that, and I didn't offer the bed again. I was much too tired.

The only thing I did for the next few days was water the carrots, and to my delight they were beginning to sprout, proof that I was not a complete failure. I had had enough seeds for eight carrots to grow, and I was eagerly looking forward to them. Other than that, the days dragged as I waited for Taro's friends' arrival.

Finally, the morning of the third day, I woke up to a loud knocking on my door. I was getting kind of sick of waking up to the knocking. I threw off the covers and patted down my hair to make myself somewhat presentable before I pulled open the wooden door.

Standing there was a tall-dark haired man and a short black-haired child, presumably his son. The man clasped his hands together, and his sleeves fell over his hands as he bowed low to me. His son did the same and I almost giggled at the formality.

"Hello," the man said in a pleasant voice, "My name is Chen, and this is my son, Charlie. I assume Taro told you about us?" the tall man questioned. I nodded. "He said you were going to open a shop here." Chen nodded.

"I will be selling seasonal seedlings for every season, and judging by your little garden over there, my shop will suit your needs." I nodded and thanked him for coming. "I'm opening the shop as soon as it is built, in about a week, I would guess. Taro told me that he invited two other people to come live here and they accepted. Do you happen to know who?" Chen asked politely. I nodded and replied, "Yes. Their names are Mirabelle and Julia. Mirabelle is going to open a shop selling livestock, animal feed, medicine and other useful farm things." He nodded. "She'll need someone to bring the animals to the island when they've been ordered . . ." he trailed off.

"Taro said she was going to ask her nephew if he would take the job." Chen smiled at me. "We're going to get this island back on track," he said. "Some day," I agreed. The two of them left quickly after that, Charlie yelling out, "Bye, Chelsea!" just as they were leaving my line of view.

I went over to Taro's house for dinner that evening, discovering that Chen and Charlie had been invited, too. We barely had room at the little table, but Felicia managed to cram us all together; I was in the seat in between Natalie and Elliot, as I was on the boat. "You look nice this evening," Elliot said to me after a minute, his hand fidgeting with that odd green apron. I shifted uncomfortably under his gaze.

Oh yes, I was going to have to let him know some way that I wasn't looking for anything romantic right now. "Thank you," was all I said at the moment. "We're expecting Mirabelle and Julia tomorrow, dears," Felicia said as she sat down next to her son. "They're setting up their shop right next to this house." "Aw, no fair," Charlie sighed.

He turned to his father. "Dad, how come we don't have any neighbors?" "We will soon, son; when more people start moving here," Chen answered happily. His eyes flickered to me for a fraction of a second. "Providing everyone works hard, of course." Had he looked at me because he knew I was the one who would make the most money for the island when the ranch started going strong, or was it because I was just some twenty-year-old kid in way over her head?

I questioned my earlier judgment for a second about Chen's niceness, but I quickly dismissed the thought; it was just my paranoia kicking in again. Nevertheless, I felt compelled to say something to everyone.

"I'm going to work hard and try my best," I assured them, "But it will take some time." "Of course it will dear," Felicia said gently, "No one expects you to do it all in a month, or a year. This is the kind of thing that could take ten years." "_Ten _years?" Charlie's eyes widened. "That long? I'll be an adult by then!" Taro shrugged.

"One can never tell with this kind of thing. I don't think this island would have any trouble attracting tourists, though. It's so peaceful. Problem is people can't stay over night until we get somebody to run an Inn or Hotel or something." Taro sighed.

"We'll find someone," Felicia promised. "Speaking of people," Chen said suddenly, "I contacted my friend Gannon the other day, you know, the carpenter I was telling you about?" Taro nodded.

"Well, he says he'd be more than happy to come over and see what he can do. He's not so sure about actually moving here, though." "Oh, he will," Natalie said, "No one can resist this place's charm, you wait and see."

I slept a little later than I had intended to the next morning. Well, okay, a lot later. I woke up at ten AM. I hurried through watering my carrots, though I wasn't actually sure why; there wasn't much to do today. I was almost completely done with clearing the field of weeds and rocks and wood. Today I thought I would work on turning some wood into lumber and some rocks into material stone with my axe and hammer.

It would take most of my energy for the day, and Mirabelle and Julia were supposed to be arriving today, so I decided to do it the next day.

Besides, where was I going to put it all when I was done? I could stack it in piles next to my house, but when winter came I didn't want it getting snowed all over.

That was when I remembered the sad-looking building next to the stable. It wasn't much, and it had looked like it would collapse if I touched it wrong, but I had asked Taro what it was and told me it used to me a tool shed, used for storing things.

As I stood in my field debating, I happened to glance to my left and I made out two figures come up toward me. They were both women; that much I could tell, and I assumed they were the island's newest residents. I turned and smiled at them, though they might have been too far away to see it. It took a few minutes, but finally they were both standing in front of me wide smiles.

"Hello, dear. Taro told us that you were going to become the island's rancher. This is wonderful news to us, as we are opening a shop selling livestock and feed and such. Did Taro already tell you?" the shorter, chubbier blonde woman asked. "Yes. You must be Mirabelle," I said. The short woman nodded and gestured to the tall, beautiful blonde next to her. "Yes, and this is my delightful daughter, Julia."

The blonde smiled at me widely. "I'm looking forward to helping my mother run the shop. It's so nice to meet you; I'm sure we'll be the best of friends," she said warmly. She really was very pretty, and I felt a small, selfish pang of jealousy. I pushed it aside and smiled back. "Yes, I'm sure. I'll be buying animals and such, but not until I get the money to build a barn or a chicken coop."

Mirabelle nodded and then laughed. "Yes. Well, Taro's family is very kind. I'm sure they'll keep us alive until then." I nodded. "Yes, they are wonderful." "Anyway," Julia interrupted in her high pretty voice, "In Taro's letter all he said was 'the new rancher' but he neglected to tell us your actual name." I smiled. "It's Chelsea."

I was meeting more people this season than I had in one year in the city, though there were a lot more people there. Maybe I was becoming anti-social. I shuddered. Mirabelle smiled again and said, "Well, we'd best be off now. Chen and Charlie have already started building their shop, but Julia and I are waiting for Chen's construction friend to come to the island before we start. He should be here any day.

Until then, we're staying at Taro's." "Really? But they're house is so small. How will all of you fit?" I asked. Mirabelle shrugged. "We'll manage. And it's only for a short amount of time, really." "Well, I feel selfish having this quiet house all to myself," I said guilty, "If any of you ever feel too cramped, there's always my place."

"How very kind of you," Julia said. "I do believe your friend Natalie mentioned sleeping at you house tonight," Mirabelle informed me. I laughed. "She's been doing that a lot. I'll have to get a bigger bed so my spine doesn't snap one day from the floor." Julia beamed at me, showing white, strait teeth.

"If it's any consolation, I'll probably be on the floor tonight too, as well as some other people. There are only four beds, you know." I nodded.

"We'll just have to make it work."

**A/N: Please R&R **


	4. Vaughn

**Disclaimer: Harvest Moon is not mine. And neither is Vaughn. **

**A/N: Thank you for all the comments. Reviews really inspire me. **

_3. Vaughn _

Natalie did indeed come over my house to sleep again. I asked her sarcastically if she was planning on moving in with me. She stuck her tongue out at me.

"If the situation was reversed, and _you _were the one in that cramped little house, you'd be sneaking over just as much as me." "_Sneaking_ over?" I asked curiously.

She rolled her eyes. "I'm nineteen years old, Chelsea, almost twenty. I can make my own decisions."

I asked her how Chen's shop-building was going, as I hadn't had the chance to see it myself and she laughed. "Not so well. Chen apparently has no idea how to build things." She laughed harder.

"I think he's just going to give up and wait until Gannon gets here." I nodded. "That's probably the best idea." I managed to get the bed that night, but not without a string of complaints from Natalie. Finally, she gave up and lay on the floor next to the bed.

It started to rain again, but only softly. I was almost asleep when I heard Natalie murmur, "Elliot's been talking about you a lot lately." I snorted.

"Julia will get his mind off me, I'm sure." Natalie chuckled. "You're probably right. She could be a model, right?" "Yeah. Good thing I'm not the jealous type," I lied. We quieted down after that and eventually I heard her snoring softly.

_And she criticizes Taro's snoring, _I thought. It took be a while to get to sleep, stressed about how I was going to go about making this ranch thrive. It wasn't like I was alone, though; Taro and his family would be with me every step of the way, I was sure.

And I'm sure Mirabelle, Julia, Chen and Charlie would work hard, too. Even though I was going to be the main worker in this place, everybody who settled down here was going to have to pitch in. I fell asleep shortly after I thought about this, dreaming about less stressful things.

After I watered the carrots the next morning, Natalie and I headed back to Taro's house. I wanted to see Chen's progress with the shop, but Natalie assured me I didn't want to see 'that disaster'.

When we came into view of Taro's house, I saw Elliot and Julia standing in front of the door. Julia said something and Elliot laughed out loud. I rolled my eyes.

"See? I told you," I said softly to Natalie. She shrugged. "I am a little worried," she whispered. "Why?" I asked, confused. "Well, what would a girl like that want with my brother? I just hope he doesn't get his heart broken," she stated somberly.

I blinked at her. "Like you would care." I rolled my eyes. She looked at me in shock and we stopped walking. "I love tormenting my brother, it's true," she said slowly, "but that doesn't mean I don't give a dang about him. I love him, in my own special way." She chuckled. "You have an awfully funny way of showing it," I mumbled as we started walking again.

She shrugged. We couldn't talk anymore after that, as we were in earshot of Elliot and Julia. They were still laughing at something, but when they saw us coming they both turned toward us with welcoming smiles.

"Hey, Natalie. Hi, Chelsea," Julia said politely. "Hey, Julia. Hi, Elliot," I answered. Natalie sort of grunted at both of them. We stood there in an awkward silence for a minute. "Gannon's supposed to arrive sometime tonight," Julia finally said, "He'll probably stay with Chen and Charlie in that shack they've created for the time being."

She laughed, and the sound was a chorus of bells. "We _really _need some more buildings around here." I nodded. "Definitely."

Natalie and I excused ourselves to go for a walk on the beach to get out of the awkward situation. I got the feeling Elliot and Julia wanted to be alone.

Creepy.

It was sunny and hot today, so once I again I was grateful for my trusty bandana. "Maybe she really likes him," I offered when we had been silent for a while. "Yeah, and maybe the world is flat," Natalie scoffed. "Your brother really is a nice person. I might like him like _that_, too if he was my type," I said in Elliot's defense.

Natalie looked over at me curiously. "Oh? And who exactly _is _your type, oh mysterious one?" she asked. I laughed. "I haven't figured it out yet," I answered, "But if I ever see 'my type', I'll let you know."

"You'd better," she warned darkly, "Or I'll we'll never have a sleepover again." "Promise?" I asked, pretending to be eager. She glared and poked my arm. "You are not nice, Chelsea." "Never said I was," I laughed with a wide grin.

There was an old shack standing on the west side of the beach, abandoned and deserted just like the rest of this place. We sat down on the sand in front of it, and Natalie yawned sleepily. "Maybe we're worrying over nothing," I offered, "Maybe they'll just be friends. He's known her for what, two days?"

"Less than that," Natalie said, "You're probably right." The silence that fell upon us was comfortable this time, and is smiled, thinking of a quote I had heard somewhere: "True friendship is when the silence between two people is comfortable."

We sat there for a long time before Natalie lay back in the sand and closed her eyes. She started snoring softly, as she had last night. I rolled my eyes. Apparently, I wasn't the only one getting less sleep than they would generally prefer.

Evening fell and it began to grow dark. I was about to wake Natalie up when I noticed a dark shape coming toward the island from far across the water. In the twilight, it was difficult to make out the exact shape of the boat, but I could tell it wasn't very big, perhaps the size of the boat that we had boarded for our 'vacation'.

I woke Natalie up, and she snapped unpleasant things at me for a minute before she reluctantly sat up. She squinted to make out the shape of the boat too, and we both got to our feet, ready to greet the visitor.

I assumed it was Gannon, coming this evening as he had said he would. We waited for another twenty minutes or so before the boat pulled up alongside the old dock. Natalie and I stepped out onto the dock and waited for the sailor to come out.

The boat stopped moving and just floated there, and we both could hear a loud banging below the deck. Finally, out onto the deck he came. He walked onto the dock and smiled down at us, a big, toothy grin. I had never seen a man so incredibly _big _before.

He towered above us like a giant. He had to be in his late forties or fifties, though; the grey hair was evidence of that. "I'm Gannon, the carpenter Chen has no doubt told you about. I came to this island to see what I can do to fix it up, and maybe move here if I decide to."

His voice was deep and almost scary-sounding. I blinked at him for a second before nodding my head. "Yes, of course. C'mon, we'll take you to Chen's shack."

"Shack?" he questioned. Natalie laughed. "Well, 'house' certainly isn't an apt description. No one on this island can build anything aside from my mother and grandfather, and they're no experts themselves. That's why we needed someone with building experience."

Gannon nodded slowly. "I'm your guy, then, I guess." We turned and started to walk up the beach. He had an enormous backpack strapped across his broad shoulders; I wondered what was in it.

"I'm Chelsea, by the way, the island's future rancher, and this is my friend Natalie, Taro's granddaughter." Gannon nodded again. "Yeah, I've met Taro a couple times. Good guy."

Natalie and I took Gannon to Chen's shack; it didn't take long. His place wasn't far from the beach at all. Natalie hadn't been kidding when she said it was a disaster. It was; I couldn't see how the place was standing. Gannon chuckled.

"You weren't joking about this place." Natalie shook her head. "Nope." Just then, the door swung open and Chen stepped out into the evening air. "Gannon, my friend, how wonderful to see you!" he said happily. He motioned for us all to come in. The inside wasn't much better. A long counter was the first thing I saw when I came it, and behind that an archway leading to a bedroom, I presumed.

Gannon slapped the wall lightly; I was surprised the building didn't collapse on us. "Needs work, Chen," he stated matter-of-factly. Chen blushed in embarrassment. "I know, I know. But that's why you're here, right?" Gannon nodded, his eyes scanning the place, presumably mapping out everything he was going to do.

"And I told you about Mirabelle and Julia, right? They haven't even started building anything," Chen reminded him. "Well, I brought a ton of lumber and material stone with me in my boat. Should be enough, I'd guess."

"Excellent. Well, I'm sure you're tired from the trip, Gannon. We can start building tomorrow." Gannon shook his head, still gazing about the room. "Naw, I'll get started on some blueprints tonight, at least."

There was a light knock on the door, and when Natalie pulled it open Mirabelle walked inside. "Ah, hello there, you must be Gannon. I'm Mirabelle," she said formally. He explained his blueprint idea to her, and that they would begin construction tomorrow.

"That's great. It's getting awfully crowded in Taro's house, and I think they're sick of us," Mirabelle laughed. "I'm sure Elliot isn't," I heard Natalie mutter. "What was that, dear?" Mirabelle asked.

"Nothing, nothing," Natalie said quickly. Gannon excused himself to begin his work and Mirabelle turned to me to say, "My nephew said he would be our animal dealer, isn't that grand? He'll be on the island every Wednesday and Thursday, so if you order an animal, Chelsea, you can expect it on one of those days. He should be here tomorrow morning."

"Goodness, we're getting a lot of new people," Chen said. Mirabelle laughed again and nodded. "Yes, I suppose so." She then excused herself and bid the rest of us goodnight.

Natalie actually didn't come to my house that night, so I wondered if something was wrong. Maybe someone had actually offered her a bed or Taro magically stopped snoring. Either way, it was nice for me.

I wondered if the animal dealer would come to my house in the morning to introduce himself, or if I would have to go find him. I had forgotten to ask Mirabelle his name. I wondered idly what he would be like, but I supposed that if he was related to Julia and Mirabelle, he would be a ball of sunshine just like them.

If I only knew then how wrong I was.

I awoke early the next morning, around six, and started watering the carrots. It was fall 18th now, and I assumed that soon they would be harvested, for I had heard that carrots were fast-growing crops.

Felicia had told me that when they were done she was going to make some kind of stew with them, but I couldn't imagine what. She said that she had gotten some kind of broth and a few other vegetables from the rescue people and when the carrots were ready the stew would be delicious. I had warily told her not to use all of them; I needed to ship some for money, and there were only eight.

She had laughed assured me she only wanted one, and I had sighed in relief. When I was done it was six forty-five, and the animal dealer still hadn't showed up. I had nothing else to do, so I went to see if Gannon had begun his work on either of the shops.

When I stood next to Taro's house though, it became apparent to me that everyone was working to haul lumber from Gannon's boat onto the plot of land next to Taro's house.

Natalie sat down a large piece of lumber next to a huge pile of more lumber. I could see Elliot coming up from the beach, carrying a piece of his own. Natalie looked at in irritation. "You gonna stand around like a gaping fish or are you going to help?" she snapped.

"I'll help if you promise to be nicer," I said as we walked to the beach. She sighed. "Sorry. Gramps got us up at, like, four in the morning to start hauling wood." I laughed.

"Lucky you." She shot me a dirty look. I looked around. "Is the animal dealer here yet?" I asked. "No, but he should be here any minute," Natalie answered.

We spent the next half hour hauling wood. Everyone was helping; Chen, Gannon (who carried many pieces of lumber while everyone else could handle only one), Mirabelle, Julia, Natalie, Taro, Elliot, Charlie and myself.

Charlie struggled under the weight of one piece of wood, so eventually Chen told him to just sit out and encourage everyone. So now he was standing next to the huge piles of lumber shouting, "You can do it!" and "Just a couple more, c'mon!" Really, it was more annoying than helpful, but I thought it would be extremely rude to say so.

When it got to be about eight o' clock, Mirabelle started to get worried. "My nephew should have been here by now," she kept saying. But it wasn't like we could do anything but wait. Finally, _finally, _after my back was hurting and my fingers had splinters, Gannon announced that was enough lumber for now. He then set to work on Mirabelle's shop.

"C'mon, Chelsea, let's go back to your place. I'm more tired than I ever have been," Natalie groaned. I agreed and we both headed to my house. We hadn't been there long when there was a knock on the door. "If that's my grandfather coming to ask us to haul more wood, tell him to go _away,_" Natalie groaned, pulling my pillow over her eyes. I laughed at the remark before I pulled the door open.

But it wasn't Taro; that much was clear to anybody who had half a brain. Standing there was a tall man wearing the most authentic cowboy clothes I had ever seen.

He wore black jeans and a black button-down shirt beneath a tan vest, and big cowboy boots that came up to his shins, and a hat was pulled down low over his face. Beneath the hat though, it was clear his hair was an odd white/silver color, though he was probably only in his twenties, like me. The hair color suited him though, and brought out his oddly colored indigo eyes.

I had never seen eyes that color before; he had to be wearing contacts. I would be lying if I said he wasn't the most strikingly handsome man I had ever met before, so I couldn't help the idiotic grin the spread across my face.

He nodded at me once before he spoke in a deep, appealing voice. "Name's Vaughn, Mirabelle's nephew. I'm the new animal dealer, and I'll be on this island every Wednesday and Thursday to do business." "Oh," I managed to say.

We stood there awkwardly for a few seconds before he sort of grunted and walked away. Natalie watched him go with critical eyes. "What a grouch," she muttered. "A gorgeous grouch," I murmured. She shrugged and went to sit on my bed again with her book.

"I guess so. Not really my type." "Oh?" I asked, copying her from yesterday, "And who exactly _is _your type?" She smirked at me. "I'll let you know when I find it," she said, copying my answer.

We both managed to keep strait faces for ten full seconds before we burst out laughing. Then something occurred to her. "So, you're type is mysterious grouchy cowboys?" she asked. My cheeks colored in a deep blush. "I just met the guy, Nat. I have no idea what he's like." "Whatever," she said, waving off the remark.

I went to water my carrots for the second time that day; I figured they might grow faster if I watered them more often. I wondered briefly how much I would get for seven carrots; but I supposed it depended on the quality. I went back into my old house and asked Natalie if she wanted to go for a walk, but she declined, saying she was too tired.

"If you keep this up, people are going to start assuming you're eighty, not nineteen." She threw the pillow at me, which I lithely avoided. I told her very politely that if she was going to pass out in my house, she should do it on the floor.

She was looking around for something else to throw at me when I left. Gannon was still working on Mirabelle's shop, and by the way he was putting things together, anyone could tell he was experienced with this kind of thing.

I asked him if there was anything I could do to help him, but he just shook his head, his eyes never leaving his work.

"Best leave him be, Chelsea," Taro murmured as he walked past me and disappeared into his house. I was about to walk down to the beach when I realized I had never explored the area to the east of town. My watch told me is was one o' clock. I glanced over my shoulder once more at the giant man; with the way he was building, Mirabelle's shop would be done in no time.

To the north of the land, there was the river again, and this land, too, was very open, with the exception of a few abandoned shacks, just like the one on the beach. A light breeze blew over me; it felt nice in the sun's heat. I was about to turn back to my house – there was really nothing new here to look at – when out of the corner of my eye, I saw a man sitting in front of the long river, staring at seemingly nothing.

The silvery white hair gave away who it was instantly, and though I tried very hard to turn around and go home, I couldn't resist the urge to walk over until I stood next him awkwardly. He glanced up at me with a seemingly annoyed expression.

For a minute, I was confused. How could I annoy someone just by walking up next to them? I pretended not to notice his negative glance. "Hey," I said lamely.

He nodded once, as he had coming over to my house this morning. I was at loss for what to say to him, but before the silence could get too long, I settled on, "Gannon's doing a really good job on Mirabelle's shop; it should be finished in no time."

He nodded again, saying nothing. It was very frustrating; I wanted to hear his deep voice again. "Have you seen Chen's little shack? It's pretty pathetic," I laughed lightly, but it still sounded like babbling.

"But I'm guessing Gannon could fix that, too." The irritated look on his face became more pronounced. "Go away. You're annoying me," he said bluntly. Well, at least I got to hear his voice; it just wasn't saying what I had hoped it would.

And what had I hoped he would say? I asked myself angrily. Still, he didn't have to be so direct and downright _mean. _I frowned at him before turning on my heel, trying very hard not to stomp away like a three-year-old. Instead of going home, I found myself heading to Taro's house for reasons unknown to myself.

I was getting tears in my eyes, and I scolded myself for being so sensitive. I threw open Taro's door without knocking, my fingers brushing the traitorous tears away. I went to the room where the four beds were and collapsed on what I knew to be Natalie's bed.

Mirabelle and Julia were both sitting on Felicia's bed, and Mirabelle was running a brush through Julia's wet hair. I turned my face away so they could not see the tears. This was the wrong place to have come, but I would have had to talk about with Natalie at my house . . . "Chelsea dear, what's wrong?"

The tears did not escape Mirabelle's notice; I hadn't expected them to. "Nothing," I said at first, gnawing on one of my fingernails. "You can tell us," Julia urged. I blinked at her once before sighing, "I just talked to Vaughn . . ." Well, 'talked' probably wasn't the right word. Mirabelle sighed. "What did he do, dear?"

she asked understandingly. "Nothing," I lied, "I'm just overly sensitive. It's no big deal." "What did he say?" Julia pressed. I shrugged. "I just tried to talk to him about Gannon's construction and he told me to go away and that I was annoying him." Mirabelle sighed again. "I'm sorry for that, Chelsea. Vaughn can be a little . . . difficult sometimes."

"He dislikes people," Julia informed me. Mirabelle lightly smacked her daughter's arm. "He does not, Julia, don't say that." She lifted her eyes to me. "He likes to keep to himself, honey. It's best you only talk to him when necessary."

"He barely talks to us, unless we force him to," Julia sighed. "Why is he like that, though?" I asked. Julia sighed. "I don't think he'd want us to say." Mirabelle nodded in agreement. "I'm going to go see how Gannon is doing with my shop. I should be back soon," she said.

She got up and I heard the front door close. I was thankful Taro stayed away; I had seen him sitting at the table staring at the wall when I'd come in. But now I was awkwardly alone with Mirabelle's beautiful daughter, and I had no idea what to say. I really wished I had gone somewhere else.

"Can I ask you something?" Julia asked me after another quiet moment. "Yes," I replied warily. She sighed and looked at the floor, fidgeting with a piece of her hair. "You aren't . . . interested in Elliot, are you? I was kind of thinking about asking him out." I blinked at her once before I smiled broadly. I laughed for a few minutes. She looked at me in bewilderment.

"What? What is it, Chelsea?" she asked. "No," I finally managed to say, "No, I'm not into him like _that _at all. You should totally go for it." Julia looked relieved. "Thanks for clearing my head. He talks about you a lot, you know, and I was worried you kind of liked him romantically." "No," I said again, "I never have."

Another awkward silence. Finally, I had to tell her. "Julia . . ." She seemed nice enough. It was only fair to warn her. "Yes?" she asked. "Just to let you know . . . well, Natalie's not exactly enthusiastic about the idea of you and her brother."

Julia looked confused for a second. "Why, exactly?" I shrugged. "She's just worried it won't work out and Elliot will get all depressed." Julia looked even more confused. "Why wouldn't it work out?" I sighed deeply, feeling even more uncomfortable. How to say it? "Well, you know . . . a girl like you, a guy like him . . . it doesn't really add up."

I decided that was the best way to put it. She looked perplexed for one more second before understanding lightened her eyes. She laughed. "I'll admit it; he is a little bit of a nerd." I nodded. "But _you _have to admit, he's probably one of the nicest guys in the world; he's a lot nicer than _some _people," she sighed, and it was obviously who she was talking about.

I fidgeted with the hem of my shirt and waited a few seconds before I looked back up at her and she continued. "And I don't know" – she shrugged – "I think his klutziness is kind of cute." I smiled. "That's nice – now all you have to do is convince Natalie."

Julia frowned, her lips pursed in a tight line. "I hadn't realized she had a problem with me." I half-smiled at her. "It's not you she has an issue with – you just have to show her that you're not going to hurt him." She nodded seriously. "I'll do that, then." I nodded before I stood up, ready to go. "I'd better be going. I'm . . ." I looked for an excuse. "Tired," I finished lamely, though it was still afternoon. "All right. Tell Natalie I said hello and" – her expression turned sheepish – "maybe you could put in a good word with her for me? I know you guys are pretty close, so I just wondered . . ." I shrugged.

"I wouldn't say we're close, exactly, but we're friends. I'll try to do that, though," I said, wanting to be on good terms with her. "Thanks," she said. Just as I made it to the archway and was almost out of her view, I heard her say, "Chelsea?" I turned reluctantly; her expression was confused again. "Yes?" I asked.

"What on earth possessed you to go up and talk to Vaughn in the first place? Most people don't; they can tell by the way he acts that he's not looking for company."

I blushed again, not wanting to admit my reasons. "I don't know, Julia. Just trying to be nice, I guess." To the hottest guy I had ever seen.

She smiled, knowing the reason I hadn't said aloud. "It's not like I can force you or anything, but like I said, he prefers to be alone. Going after him would most likely just hurt you later," she stated.

"Thanks for the warning," I muttered before I turned and walked away.

**A/N: My updating schedule is usually every Friday, by the way. I'll post either one or two chapters. I have a lot of this story done already. **


	5. Fishing

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harvest Moon: Island of Happiness. **

_4. Fishing _

The next day was uneventful. Gannon worked almost non-stop on Mirabelle's shop again. Chen timidly asked when he was going to start his shop, and Gannon said that he liked to finish a project before he even thought about starting another one. "One request at a time," he had said. I could tell that my carrots were almost ready to be harvested; I could hardly wait.

Though his shop was still a wreck, Chen had already begun selling things and I had to admire his determination. The one book I had brought with me on the boat ride was still with me, so I buried my nose in that for a good two hours after my watering.

I had decided to forget the whole incident with Vaughn completely; but it was harder than I cared to admit to anyone not to think about the fact that he was in town today. My mind wondered often from the story I was reading.

Finally, I shut it completely, disgusted with myself. I stared at the ceiling for a few minutes before I heard a loud banging on the door.

For a minute I felt hope; maybe he had come back to apologize for yesterday? I hurried to the door and nearly yanked it open in my eagerness. Happiness quickly faded to disappointment as I laid eyes on the little old man before me.

In his right hand, he held something long, which I recognized as a fishing pole. "G'morning, little missy," he said cheerily. I gave him a small smile at the nickname he'd given me ever since we'd first met. "Good morning, Taro," I answered nicely.

He held the fishing pole out to me and laid it in my hands. "You know how to use one of these?" he questioned. Long ago, when I was only ten years old, my father had shown me a thing or two about fishing, though I'd never really had a knack for it.

I didn't have the patience then to sit there for sometimes hours on end waiting for the fish to bite. I hoped I was a little more tolerant now. "I used to; but that was a long time ago," I said slowly.

He nodded like he had expected as much. "C'mon, then." He led me over to the spot I filled up my watering can. He instructed me how to use it for forty five minutes before he informed me I certainly wasn't an expert, but I knew how to work the fishing pole correctly.

"Now you have a way to earn money besides just crops," Taro said with a broad smile. "Besides, shipping fish might draw others to this island. I finally finished going through all the supplies the rescuers left us; I found that there, and I thought you might use it." I nodded.

"Definitely." Taro turned without another word and started to walk away. "Taro?" I called. He turned back. "Yes?" "How's Gannon's construction going?" The old man smiled wider. "Wonderfully well. Man knows how to build." I laughed and agreed with him before he walked back to his house.

When I left my land that day, I tried very hard to tell myself it was only because I wanted to see Natalie. Though I was fairly good at lying to others, I had no such luck with myself. So, ignoring my true intentions, I set off for her house.

As soon as I stood at the front door of her house, I was scanning the land for him, but he wasn't in view anywhere. "He's probably at the beach," I heard Natalie's now-familiar voice say. I almost groaned out loud.

I hadn't even noticed the door open. I had told her about my unpleasant encounter with Vaughn the previous day, but I also confessed my inexplicable attraction to him, and it seemed she simply wasn't going to let it go. She was leaning against the door frame, a pronounced smirk on her face. "I wasn't looking for Vaughn," I lied.

She rolled her eyes and reached for my arm. "Come on in – I'm bored, and Elliot's annoying me." I sighed. I hated being caught in the middle of the sibling's squabbles. We sat at her small table and doodled games of tic tac toe, which served to entertain me for about two minutes. Elliot came and sat next to me just as Taro came into the room. "Making good use of that fishing pole, little Missy?" he asked as he made his way to the door. I chuckled.

"You know I've had no time to use it, Taro." "Now seems to be the perfect time," the old man grunted. "Chelsea doesn't have to fish if she doesn't want to, Gramps," Natalie told him sternly. The old man shrugged and his eyes flickered to the window. "My trick knee's telling me it'll rain tomorrow," he muttered just before leaving the house.

Once in a while, when I came over to Natalie's house, Taro would mumble something about the next day's weather, and somehow the strange elderly man always turned out to be right. It was odd and downright creepy.

"That'll be good for your turnips, Chelsea; it hasn't rained as much as it usually does in the fall this year," Natalie said conversationally. I nodded. Elliot had remained quiet for some time, and I felt a little rude; leaving him out of the conversation.

"Where are Julia and Mirabelle, Elliot?" I asked politely. He shrugged his narrow shoulders. "I have no idea." "Oh," I muttered.

We all sat here awkwardly for a moment before a sudden thought occurred to me. But I would have to be tricky, so as not to make Natalie suspicious. "You know . . . Taro's probably right. It's such a nice day, and if it's going to rain tomorrow, I ought to start getting the hang of it now. I have a lot to learn, anyway." "Where exactly are you planning to fish?"

Natalie asked in an innocent voice. Too innocent. I glanced at her irritably; she knew me far too well after having met me less than a month ago. I shrugged in an attempt to be nonchalant. "The beach, maybe." Natalie opened her mouth to say something, but Elliot thankfully interrupted. "That's probably the best place – that's where the bigger fish tend to be." "Yeah, that's why," I lied. Natalie shrugged her shoulders. "I'll come with you."

Natalie knew the real reason I wanted to go to the beach, but of course Elliot didn't. So when he said that he'd like to come along too, I looked away to hide my wince. I didn't want to hurt his feelings; he was so kind, a nerd or not.

Natalie's smirk grew more pronounced when her brother said that and I felt like sticking my tongue out at her like a five-year-old. The three of us hurried to my house and I retrieved my fishing pole before we made our way to the beach. I was walking way faster than usual and Elliot asked me politely twice for me to slow down.

"Why are you in such a hurry? It's such a nice day – enjoy it," he said cheerfully. "Sorry," I mumbled as we finally made it to our destination. Sure enough, Natalie had been right about Vaughn being at the beach.

Squinting, I saw him standing in front of the undulating waves. I glanced back at my company and wondered what my excuse should be. "You know, Elliot," Natalie said, interrupting my wondering. "I think I heard Gannon say he wanted help with Mirabelle's shop today." I blinked at her. Gannon most certainly had not asked for help from anyone.

Elliot seemed as perplexed as me. "But he never said . . ." he trailed off. Natalie huffed in annoyance. "I know what I heard; I'm only just remembering. So come on, dear brother of mine, and let's go," she said sarcastically.

She grabbed his arm and almost spun him around. "What about Chelsea?" Elliot grumbled. "Chelsea needs to get used to the fishing pole to make some money for this desolate island," she snapped irritably.

Just before the two disappeared from my view, Natalie turned and smiled at me, pointing over toward Vaughn. This time I _did _stick my tongue out at her and I saw her laugh before she walked away, but the waves drown the sound out. I was still irritated at the silver-haired Vaughn for his rudeness yesterday, and Julia's warning sounded now in my mind. _Going after him would probably just come back to hurt you later, _it chanted to me.

But I wasn't listening to the little voice that warned me. All I could focus on was my silly and perhaps irrational anticipation.

Casually, I ambled my way over to Vaughn and smiled at him politely. The glance he gave me this time wasn't irritated; it was actually bordering on exasperation. I would never figure out this man's emotions. "Hello, Vaughn," I said formally, "Isn't it a nice day today?"

He shrugged and mumbled a 'yes' gruffly. I asked him tentatively about his job, trying to get a conversation going. He shrugged again. "It's a bit rough, transporting animals on a boat, but it's my job, so I deal with it," he said indifferently. It was the longest sentence I had ever heard him say.

"I'm sure it is. I guess you'll be transporting some animals over here, once I get enough money to build a barn or a chicken coop. I just need to find ways to actually make the money," I laughed. He nodded slowly. "Money is important. You can't do anything without money – never forget that," he said this intently, as if he was telling me something vitally important.

I shrugged. "There are a lot of things in the world more important than money, Vaughn," I informed him, but I wondered if he believed what I said.

He stared out into the rough surf. "It depends on how you look at it and who you are, I suppose," he mused. He reached up to push a bit of his hair from his oddly colored eyes. I wondered what his hair would feel like in my hands, or what his lips would feel like against my own . . .

"Bye," he said abruptly, turning and walking away from me before I had the chance to reply. I sighed as I watched him go. I doubted I had made any progress, but at least I had managed a short conversation with him.

That made me feel confident. It didn't look like he talked anyone unless it was necessary, so I was pretty happy. Because I had the fishing pole and I really did need to get better at it, I sat down on the dock and threw out the line. It didn't help, however, that my mind kept wandering to a certain man dressed in cowboy clothes. I sighed and forced myself to be ready, to feel the tug against the line, ready to reel in.

I sat there for hours and managed to catch seven fish. Five of them were smallish, pathetic-looking things, but the other two were medium-sized and not exactly deplorable. I almost giddy with my happiness when I felt a light tap on my shoulder.

I looked up to see a beautiful blonde smiling down at me warmly. "Hey, Chelsea," she said pleasantly. "Mind if I sit?" I shook my head, and it was true; I really didn't. It seemed to me I hadn't been as nice to Julia as I could have, and the reason might have been jealousy.

Well, okay, it _was _and not _might have been. _But I had never thought myself to be shallow, so I looked her with a new perspective. I shouldn't be jealous of her; I should be happy I could have a friend with such an optimistic view on matters. Natalie certainly wasn't like that. Julia took off her socks and shoes and let her feet dangle off the dock, her toes swishing in the water.

"So, I see what you mean about Natalie," she started, fidgeting with a piece of her hair. "Oh?" I asked. "Yeah. I asked Elliot if he wanted to take a walk with me, but Natalie said he had to stay behind to help Felicia with the cleaning – though that tiny house is already spotless. Felicia said so, so I did get to go for the walk with Elliot, but Natalie's intention was clear."

She sighed unhappily. I patted her shoulder comfortingly. "It's okay – Natalie's just like that. I don't mean to make you glum, but it'll probably take some time for her to change her mind about you," I said honestly. She nodded and bit her lip. "Yeah, I guess so. I guess this is kind of a good thing – this is the first time I've seen that Natalie actually _cares _about her brother."

I nodded thoughtfully. "She pretends she doesn't, but I think she really loves him a lot," I mused. Julia made a face. "She has an awfully funny way of showing it," she said sourly, and I almost chuckled, realizing she had copied my answer from before unknowingly.

"That's Natalie for you." I laughed. The silence that lapsed over us for the next few minutes wasn't uncomfortable. It was around two in the afternoon now, and the sun was burning hot in the sky. "So," Julia finally broke the quiet.

"Yes?" I asked. "I saw you and Vaughn talking earlier today," she said hesitantly. I was instantly wary, but I kept my tone light. "Yes. I actually managed to get a few complete sentences out of him today," I laughed again, but it wasn't completely genuine. "Really? Not many people can do that," she mused. I shrugged and decided to be honest with her now.

Why not? I liked her, almost as much as Natalie. "Yeah, well, he didn't say much of anything particularly amusing to me," I sighed. "What do you mean?" "Mostly he just talked about money and his job." I said this with a frustrated voice. She nodded understandingly.

"Yes, he's very much concerned with those things. Always has been. Always will." I was saddened by this fact, and I wasn't sure why. There is nothing wrong with liking money, I reasoned, it's only bad when the liking borders on obsessive, and I had no reason to believe this of Vaughn. I was becoming way too presumptuous.

"Hey, do you see that?" Julia squinted out into the ocean. I squinted, too, and I could make out the vague shape of a medium-sized boat. Julia brought her feet out of the water and shoved them into the socks and shoes. We both stood up; I yanked the rucksack onto my shoulders. We waited there for a while, until the boat made its way up alongside the dock.

A boy, probably my age, came out of the boat and onto the dock. His skin was a deep brown, as was his eyes and hair. He wore purple clothes and the widest smile I had ever seen. "Hey," he said, sticking out his hand for us to shake.

We did so, and then he told us, "My name is Denny – it's awesome to meet you. I heard there are lots of undiscovered fish on this island, so I'm coming to live here." "You fish?" Julia asked curiously. He nodded his head in fast, jerky movements. "Yeah – I'm a full-blooded fisherman, through and through." He laughed, and I instantly liked him.

He seemed very enthusiastic and polite, and I asked him where he was going to live. "We just got a carpenter on the island," I informed him, "And he'll build pretty much anything for you…for a price, of course," I felt compelled to add. He nodded and his big brown eyes sparkled with amusement. "That little house over there will do," he said, pointing to the beaten-up, broken shack that lay to the east of us.

"Uh . . . are you sure? I'm sure Gannon could build something more accommodating," I mumbled. He laughed again. "It'll be fine once it's fixed up – you'll see. I'm good with that kind of thing." I nodded, and then I realized we hadn't even introduced ourselves. "I'm Chelsea, this island's future rancher, and this is Julia," I told him.

He nodded. "Cool." We took Denny around to meet the rest of the island folk. Gannon still worked on Mirabelle's shop – I wondered if the man ever stopped for a bathroom break, at least – but he stopped for a minute or two to accept greetings from our newest resident. We took him to meet Mirabelle, Taro, Felicia, Natalie, Elliot, Charlie, and Chen.

They were all delighted for the newest addition, and Denny was polite and charming to every one of them. I wanted to be attracted to him, I really did, but every time I attempted to think about him _that _way, my mind would wonder away from him and go back to the island's enigmatic animal dealer. Oh yes, Denny and I were meant to be friends, that was all.

I took Denny up to show him my land, and he commented that it would take a lot of work to build up this isolated island. I laughed and agreed – I'd heard that from everyone. On our way back, Vaughn was walking by Taro's house, presumably on his way to the barren part of the island with the two crappy-looking shacks like the one on the beach. Before he could get too far away, I thoughtlessly hurried up to him and placed a hand on his arm.

He sort of jumped for a second when I touched him, but he looked down at me with annoyance in his eyes. I pulled my hand back for a second, amazed at the electrical spark that had made its way into my body when I touched him. If he had felt it, too, he certainly didn't show it.

"Vaughn," I said as if nothing had happened. I gestured to Denny with my right hand and went on, "This is Denny. He's moving to the island – he's a fisherman – and Julia and I were taking him around to meet everyone." "What's up, man?" Denny asked good-naturedly.

Vaughn muttered a "hello" before he looked at Julia. "Does Gannon know when he'll be done?" he asked, tilting his head in Gannon's general direction. Julia shook her head. "No, but I'm sure it'll be soon," she assured him with a smile.

Vaughn nodded once, and then turned and walked away. "What's with him?" Denny asked. I shrugged. "Don't mind him – he's just like that," I sighed. Julia gave me a look that resembled sympathy, and I gave her a dirty look back. She looked quickly away before Denny announced he was going to his dirty shack to examine it.

"You're not sleeping there tonight, right?" Julia checked. "Naw, I'll sleep on my boat tonight," he assured her. With that, he walked back to the beach, leaving Julia and I standing in front of Taro's house. I invited her over to my house, and she accepted happily.

We walked back to my house, but not before I glanced once more in the direction Vaughn had gone.


	6. Denny

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harvest Moon. Oh well. **

_5: Denny _

As Taro had predicted, it rained the next day. I was going to have to start going to the old man all the time for the next day's weather report. I walked over to my field to check the carrots, trying to ignore my aching muscles.

I had given Julia the bed last night; she'd been stuck on the floor of Taro's house for so long. Gannon had announced that he was almost done with Mirabelle's shop, and Julia was relieved that her floor-days wouldn't last much longer.

I was going to have to get a bigger bed if I was going to have all these sleepovers. I turned giddy, however, when I laid my eyes upon the carrots in my field. They were ready to be harvested. When I pulled them out of the dirt, they looked just as I had hoped; big and healthy.

I walked over to my shipping box and shipped five of them; I was left with one long carrot in my hand. I shivered in my light jacket from the icy rain as I hurried to Taro's house; I was lucky it wasn't far away.

I opened the door without knocking and hurried inside. Natalie, Elliot, Julia, and Mirabelle were nowhere to be seen, but Taro was sitting at his little wooden table and Felicia was at her little kitchen.

"Good morning, little missy," Taro said politely.

"Hey, Taro," I answered nicely.

Felicia turned around and eyed the carrot in my hand. She clapped her hands together in delight and said in a sugar-sweet voice, "How wonderful!" She walked over to me and I handed her the crop.

She turned it over in her hands, commented how on how exquisite it was.

I thanked her and she walked back to her kitchen with my carrot.

"Just wait till you see the stew I'm making – it's for everyone here, you know. Taro, Elliot, Natalie, Gannon, Chen, Charlie, Mirabelle, Julia, Denny . . ." Her eyes sparkled with delight as she spoke. "I'll need a few days to cook it, but I'll have it done by Sunday. Come by the house around six, alright?" She set the carrot on the counter and went back to whatever she had been doing before.

I was about to agree when a sudden thought occurred to me and I hesitated. "Um . . . Felicia?" I asked.

"Yes, dear?" she replied without turning around.

"Well, do you think that . . . maybe . . . we could have the stew on Wednesday?" I asked tentatively.

"Why Wednesday, honey?" She wiped her hands on a little white cloth before turning to me, waiting patiently for my answer.

I bit my lip, but I decided there was no point in lying to her. "Well . . . Vaughn will be here, and I . . ." I trailed off, unsure of how to say it.

Understanding dawned on her and she smiled at me warmly. She laughed softly. "Julia mentioned something about your interest," she said.

I opened my mouth to . . . what? Protest?

"Don't worry about a thing, Chelsea, Wednesday it is."

I nodded; relieved she hadn't made me explain. "Little early to be thinking about boys, isn't it, little missy?" Taro asked.

I shrugged and got out of his house quickly after that; the last thing on Earth I wanted was for Taro to talk to me about my romantic life. I shuddered.

***

That week went by rather slowly. I tried to tell myself that there was no reason for that; I was just bored, that was all. I sighed, ignoring the real answer.

I had gotten a large sum of money for the carrots, much more than I had anticipated, and that made me very happy. Gannon had finished Mirabelle's shop, and it was ten times nicer that I had expected it to be.

But when Julia looked at the building, she declared something was missing; that was until Elliot found a horseshoe and nailed it to the door. Afterwards, she thanked him rather warmly and said that it was perfect.

His blush showed he was very embarrassed, and I had to admit they were cute to watch. Even Natalie had seemed relaxed that day, allowing the exchange without dirty looks or snappy comments.

Maybe she was finally coming to terms with the situation. Two beds had been placed inside the shop, and Mirabelle said Taro was probably glad to have them out of his hair (or rather, his mustache).

Gannon had stood and admired his work for a few minutes before he turned and announced that he had made his decision; he was going to move here, and we celebrated the fact we had another permanent resident.

Gannon was going to open a shop of his own, offering to fix and build things. He had even made a list of everything he could fix, and then put a price on each one. A few he put there specifically for me, like the offer to build a barn and a chicken coop.

The list also included fixing up the roads, my house, and the bridges. Off to the east of the main part of the island, where the two old wooden shacks resided, I had recently discovered two other broken bridges, closely resembling the one that cut off the way to the forest.

I had been surprised that the bridges were there, and even more surprised the price. Gannon had seemed a little insulted when I'd asked him about the high price, and he told me that the amount of lumber needed for the jobs was a lot, and that he was being quite fair.

I agreed with him after that, not wanted to upset a man his size.

He said he would fix the bridges in a certain order: first, the one leading to the wide open plot of land (Taro said that was best; with more people, we'd be able to hold festivals with such space), second he would fix the bridge to the forest (where I would discover whether or not I had really seen a pink-roofed house), and lastly the bridge leading to the north, into what appeared to be a thick jungle.

He also warned me that each time, bridges would get more and more expensive. Though this made me a little glum, I got over it quickly. I decided that I would first build a chicken coop, and then I would focus on the bridge to the Meadow, as I had taken to calling it.

Denny had settled into our little 'family' quite nicely; everyone found him to be charming and very easy to talk to.

My fishing skills hadn't improved at all, a fact I was not happy with, so I made a plan to go and ask him if he could teach me a thing or two. But the day I went down, he was working on the shack, and I had to admit he had done a good job.

Unlike Elliot, Denny didn't show any kind of romantic interest in me; he only wanted to be my friend, and this made me like him even more. I had a feeling that if I wanted to change that friend status, I probably could, but I wasn't likely to.

"I love what you've done with the place," I commented.

Instead of chairs, he had four soft pillows on the ground. I sank into one, hoping I would have the energy to get back up again.

He glanced around with big brown eyes. Around his neck he now wore a necklace with a sharp shark tooth, and I shuddered, wondering if he had indeed caught the great predator.

"Thanks; I'm no decorator, but I do what I can."

"So, Felicia told me that the stew would be on Wednesday," I informed him.

He looked puzzled for a second. "Really? She told me that it was Sunday."

I nodded. "It was originally, but I asked her to change it," I explained.

He looked even more confused and his fingers ran along the tooth – I hoped he wouldn't cut himself. "Why did you do that?"

I sighed and looked away, not wanting to explain to him. "I just thought it would be nice if _everyone _was there," I said, emphasizing the word very clearly.

"Everyone . . . ?" It took him a minute, but then he understood. "Yeah, I guess so. Hopefully he'll be a little more social," Denny laughed.

I grinned and him wryly. "I doubt it; Julia said that Vaughn is always like that."

"I can make anyone laugh; you'll see," Denny promised, a mischievous glint in his eye, "You just have to figure out what makes someone tick."

I got up and started for the door. "I don't think so, Denny, but good luck trying."

"Maybe we can start on those fishing lessons before the stew Wednesday," he said as he absently readjusted his purple bandana, "But if you're as bad as you tell me, then it might take a while for you to get good at it."

I laughed. "Trust me; I'm just as bad – if not worse – than what I've told you. See you later, Denny."

"See ya, Chelsea."

***

It was the 26th of fall now, and I seriously needed to pay attention to Denny's fishing lessons if I had any prayer of making any money in the winter.

He showed up outside the door of my farmhouse at exactly seven o' clock on Wednesday morning, his own sturdy fishing pole held tight in his brown fingers.

I had been a little reluctant; I had hoped I would have the chance to find Vaughn and tell him about tonight's stew before someone else did. But I assumed he would come down to the beach again, and, if he didn't, I would just have to get out of my lesson a little bit early.

Denny and I sat on the dock for three full hours before he declared that I _was _as bad as I had told him. He showed me a few useful things, though; he informed me that I tried to jerk the line in too quickly, and the fish got scared off.

After taking his advice of waiting longer, I successfully caught more fish in this one day than I ever had before. Denny congratulated me, and I discovered that he was fond of cracking jokes every ten minutes.

Once he had me laughing so hard I thought I would double over and fall into the water, but I caught myself in time.

It was during one of these times, when we were laughing in delight over my latest failed attempt, that I caught a glimpse of a figure in the corner of my eye.

I had been right about Vaughn coming to the beach; he stood a little ways away from us, but he wasn't staring off into the sea like I had expected him to do. Instead he was staring over at Denny and I, his beautifully colored eyes narrowed under the brim of his hat.

My heart jumped a little at the sight of him, and for a moment I was overjoyed to simply see him after the long week. I couldn't imagine why he was glaring over at us, though, and I didn't spent much time on the thought.

I told Denny I was going over to talk to him though, and he nodded his head, informing me that it was his turn to get some fish anyway. "Some _big _fish," he called as I walked off, "Not the puny, skinny ones you seem to attract like a magnet."

"Oh shut up," I called back, blushing a deep shade of red.

Vaughn didn't smile at me as I approached, but at least he no longer glared.

For a minute, I studied his face and had the urge to push his silvery hair away from his eyes. I sighed, knowing that this would not be acceptable for him, so I buried my twitching fingers deep into the pockets of my jeans.

"Hey Vaughn," I said conversationally.

He nodded, as I knew he would, and I continued.

"Did Mirabelle already tell you about the stew Felicia made tonight?"

He nodded again. "Wasn't that supposed to be Sunday?" He asked.

I smiled, happy I was hearing his voice. "Yes, but I wanted everyone to be here, so I asked Felicia to wait a little longer."

"_You _did it?" He seemed surprised.

I nodded slowly, studying his face for a reaction. It might have been my imagination, but I thought I saw his cheeks darken in color slightly. "Wasn't necessary," he said gruffly, "No need to wait for me."

"I wanted to," I informed him.

He shrugged and looked out into the ocean. "So I'll see you there tonight?" I checked.

He gave me a very small smile, and I wondered what he would look like if he gave me a real smile, a big broad grin. Right then, I vowed that someday I would find out.

"With Mirabelle and Julia gone, Felicia's stew is pretty much my only dinner option," he said. \

"You'll have fun – everyone will be there." I stopped short, realizing that this wasn't the way to convince him it would be enjoyable. He sort of winced at my description.

Vaughn glanced over at Denny, who was tugging hard on his fishing pole, wrestling with what could only be a very big fish. I almost rolled my eyes.

"You're boyfriend's probably waiting for you," Vaughn muttered, taking a step back from me.

I stood, staring at him dumbly for a second before I quickly clarified. "Oh, he's definitely not my boyfriend, but I should be getting back."

He didn't answer. "See you soon, Vaughn," I said, more to myself than to him.

He turned on his heel and walked back toward the main part of town. I went back to Denny and informed him I was going to Taro's house for a small lunch, and he nodded, consumed in the battle with the fish.

I had caught ten little fish, three medium-sized fish, and one that was actually big enough to be called large. Denny had requested that Felicia add a few little fish, and though she was a bit reluctant to put meat in her vegetable stew, she eventually caved because of her desire to make everyone happy.

Felicia was as close to selfless as anyone can possibly get. It was very hard as I walked to Taro's house, not to head over to Mirabelle's shop, where Vaughn no doubt was. Gannon had built an extra little room in it especially for him when he was over on Wednesday nights.

I sighed.

I passed Gannon, who was working on Chen's shop. Chen and Charlie were standing in front of the building, Chen with a satisfied look on his face. Charlie looked bored.

"It's looking better already, Gannon," I complimented him, and he nodded in response; he was sweating in the sun's heat.

It was a surprising to find that Natalie was actually at her house and not mine; maybe she had guessed I would come here. She sat across from her brother at the table, doodling idly on some paper. Elliot was cleaning his glasses with a bit of that odd green apron. Natalie looked up, annoyed.

"It's about time you showed up," she snapped.

I rolled my eyes and sat down next to her. "So what's Taro say the weather will be like tomorrow?" I asked as I slid the rucksack off my shoulders and leaning it against the table leg.

Elliot answered my question with a light laugh. "He said his big toe was telling him it'll be cloudy tomorrow – how his body parts tell him things constantly I'll never know."

I chuckled. "Taro is a strange old man."

"No stranger than any of you young 'uns," Taro said as he shut the door behind him; I hadn't ever noticed him coming in. He announced he was going to take a nap before the big strew, but not before he asked me if I had learned anything new about fishing.

I told him I had picked up a few things but I was still no expert.

"Practice makes perfect," he reminded me of a saying I had heard a thousand times.

He disappeared into the little room with the four beds.

I had done the math; if I fished as often as I was able to, I would probably have the money for a chicken coop by mid-winter, if I provided the materials. It was going to be tiring, fishing and collecting wood all winter, but ranchers have to work very hard, I reminded myself. I had known that from the start; it was one of the things I had considered before accepting Taro's offer.

I talked for a little while with Natalie and Elliot, though Natalie didn't talk about anything too personal because of her brother around. At some point, she asked if I had alerted Vaughn about tonight's evening plans.

"Yes, I did. At the beach this morning."

Natalie smirked.

"What?" I asked.

"Julia was telling him about it this morning, but I stopped her because I knew you'd be stalking him all day, and wanting to tell him yourself."

"I did _not _stalk him," I snapped at her. "I was fishing at the beach with Denny. I waited for _him _to come to _me._"

Natalie rolled her eyes. "Trust me – that strategy won't work long on him."

"How do you know?" I asked, irritated.

Natalie shrugged. "I can just tell – I know boys," she informed me.

I snorted before announcing that I myself was tired and was off to take a tap. Elliot and Natalie bid me goodbye before I walked back to my farmhouse.

**A/N: I like reviews. ;) **


	7. Smile for me

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harvest Moon. **

_6. Smile for me _

I learned something that night that disappointed me deeply.

Vaughn does not like carrots.

I cursed myself out as I walked through the cold autumn air towards Mirabelle's shop. Though Felicia was the one hosting this little gathering, we'd decided that Mirabelle's place would be the best since it was the biggest and the nicest.

I had run into Julia yet again before I had set out to leave for the 'party', and I had began talking about how I hoped everyone would love Felicia's dish. We had been talking for several minutes before Julia finally confessed to me that Vaughn hates carrots.

"What?" I had asked in horror.

She shrugged. "Yes – he can't stand them. He simply won't eat them, no matter how hard I try."

While I was probably making a mountain out of a molehill, I didn't care. Putting ingredients in the stew that were despicable to Vaughn was probably not the best way of getting him to like me. I wasn't sure when or how I had decided that I was going to do that, even if him liking me meant he were only friends, somehow, some way, it was going to happen.

But so far I wasn't off the best start. I was heading to Mirabelle's shop without the weight of the rucksack on my shoulders, only the light jacket, and for some strange reason, I felt almost exposed.

It was odd, especially when the extra weight often hurt my shoulders; it was like not having my bandana. Removing my bandana was like removing my arm; I had to have it.

I passed Taro's house and soon I stood in front of Mirabelle's door.

There are those who believe in being fashionably late, but I think it's pretty obvious to everyone here that I have nothing to do when I'm not watering crops, cutting wood or fishing. And besides, who cared if I was fifteen minutes early? Certainly not me.

I raised my fist and knocked loudly on the door three times. I was instantly met with a pair of pretty blue eyes and a warm flow of air.

Julia smiled at me and gestured for me to come in. Not only was it warm inside, it smelled wonderful. Felicia stood at Mirabelle's kitchen, and the pot on the little stove was twice as large as any pot I had ever seen.

"Smells good, Felicia," I complimented her.

She beamed at me. "Do you really think so? I've been working on it for so long."

My eyes scanned the kitchen and then the larger main room, but he was not there.

"He's still in his room," Julia whispered to me, "But with the party being here he'll have to come out sometime. I think." She chuckled softly.

Though Julia was the one who had initially warned me about Vaughn in the first place, I think she was warming up the idea of my liking of him. I decided I would ask her about just as I heard another knocking at the door.

I pulled it open.

Natalie barged in without a hello and pulled off her coat, shoving it into my hands. It was obvious she was in a bad mood, and Elliot's glum expression showed he had suffered from it. He removed his coat as well and asked politely where he should put it.

"Over on the counter is fine, dear," Mirabelle said absentmindedly as she helped Felicia at the counter.

Mirabelle had known Taro for a while, but she had never really gotten to know his daughter before. They were becoming fast friends, as Natalie and I had.

I took Natalie's coat over to the counter as Elliot did; he smiled up at me with bright eyes. "Hey, Chelsea, how's the ranch?"

"It's not a ranch yet," I laughed.

"But it will be," he reminded me encouragingly. Elliot was so up-building; I had to give him credit for that.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Julia staring at us with a sour expression. Quickly, I went over to stand by Natalie, who was sitting at the table, lips pursed. I sat down across from her and asked what was wrong.

"Oh, nothing, I just can't find my headband; you know, the red one I wear all the time?"

I nodded just as yet another knock sounded. Denny arrived next, all happy and joking as he usually was. Chen and Charlie were next, and they were all in a jovial mood from the work Gannon had done on their shop.

"It'll be done in no time," Charlie told everyone happily.

Gannon lumbered through the door next; his coat covered everybody else's. Taro came in last, complaining about how Natalie and Elliot had left when there was still work to be done.

Mirabelle had the type of table that split open in the middle and allowed an extra piece of long wood to be placed in the center, when the space was needed. There weren't enough chairs, however, so some people would probably eat on their knees. No one seemed to mind, though.

Felicia said the stew was done and everyone began to sit down. I hesitated next to the table.

"Oh Chelsea," Mirabelle said off-handedly, "would you please go get Vaughn? He knows he was supposed to be out here by now."

I nodded and started down the little narrow hallway that held five little rooms. I paused, unsure of which one it was, so I tentatively opened the first one.

It held an ordinary little bed, a small window, a dresser, a lamp and a nightstand, with a closet in the corner, but no Vaughn.

The second room was similar, but the bedding was pink and yellow and girlish.

Definitely no Vaughn here.

The third was a bathroom, and I pulled the door shut, irritated. "Looking for something?" A familiar voice asked.

I whirled and stared up at his oddly colored eyes. I smiled at him widely, unsure of what else to do. "More like looking for some_one_," I corrected, "Mirabelle wondered where you were."

He rolled his eyes. "I'm coming."

When we got back to the table I sat next to Natalie and Charlie. I sighed when Vaughn was seated in between Julia and Denny.

"Hey, man, how's it going?" Denny asked cheerily.

"Fine," Vaughn muttered.

When he wasn't looking, Denny gave me a look that can only be described as questioning. I shrugged and gave him a little smile. Felicia went around the table and poured the stew into everybody's bowls.

Vaughn made a face when he noticed the little orange bits in his bowl.

"C'mon, Vaughn, there good," Julia tried to convince him, "Just try them."

He glanced at her, annoyed. "I can eat whatever I choose," he retorted.

Julia sighed in exasperation and turned to me. "Don't you think he should eat them, Chelsea? They're good for him."

I blinked at her as I decided carefully how to answer. Something occurred to me. Julia hated fish. And Denny had convinced Felicia to put some in the stew.

"Why don't _you_ eat some of the fish?" I asked, gesturing to the bits in her bowl.

Her nose wrinkled in disgust when she saw them. "Never mind," she muttered, clearly irritated with me for siding against her.

But my defensive efforts were rewarded when Vaughn mouthed a 'thanks' at me from across the table. I nodded once, and he began picking the orange bits out of the bowl.

Dinner was quite uneventful after that.

"When are you going to get Gannon to build the bridge to the Meadow, Chelsea?" Charlie wanted to know, his face stuffed with food as he asked.

I smiled at him politely. "Sometime next season, Charlie," I told him.

He frowned unhappily. Vaughn was quiet for the rest of the time, aside from his short sentences when people tried to make conversation. Time passed, and before I knew it everyone was pulling their coats back on and saying goodnight.

"Sometime, Gannon, when we got the money, I'll ask you to fix up my house; it's tiny, you know," Taro informed the carpenter.

Gannon smiled and nodded.

Chen, Charlie and him left quickly after that, followed by a rather full Denny. "See ya later, cowboy," he called to Vaughn, who was helping Julia clean up.

Vaughn rolled his eyes and didn't reply.

Denny grinned widely at me and then left.

Felicia and Mirabelle left with Chen, announcing they both had things to buy. Elliot and Taro ambled back to their house, but Natalie stayed with me. "Julia," she said.

Julia looked up. "Yes, Natalie?" she asked.

"Let's go for a walk; Chelsea and Vaughn can clean up."

Julia got the message and nodded, pushing a wet plate in my hands.

"See you, Chels," Natalie called as they pulled the door behind them.

"Rude," Vaughn muttered, turning back to the sink. I rolled my eyes. I knew some rude people, and they certainly weren't outside this room.

I turned and grabbed a dishtowel and began to dry and put them away. His movements were stiff and uncomfortable; more uncomfortable than he usually was. But of course it couldn't be my presence.

I was sure I couldn't affect him that strongly in any way, so that made me curious. "Something wrong?" My voice was supposed to sound gentle and caring, but to me it sounded a little persistent and nosy.

"Nothing," he obviously lied.

I sighed as I dried off the clean plate. "You can tell me," I told him, "I" – I hesitated, looking for a good reason. When I came up blank, all I could do was sigh again and repeat, "You can tell me."

He sighed, too, but finally he said, "Mirabelle is a little annoyed with me."

I felt a selfish wave of relief that it wasn't I who was making him so uncomfortable. "About?" I asked.

His hands went under the water again to retrieve a seriously disgusting fork. He didn't seem to notice the grime, so lost in his thoughts.

"She asked me to be happy tonight, to laugh and smile." He wrinkled his nose.

The expression might have been unappealing on someone else, but he pulled it off. I sighed and made myself focus on his words rather than just the sound of his voice.

He stopped washing altogether then, though the sink was still half full, and turned to me an expression so perplexed it was almost funny. "I don't _get _it," he grumbled, "What's the big deal about smiling?"

I shrugged as I put the now-clean fork away. "I don't know how to explain it," I said honestly, ". . . Maybe it'll make you seem . . . less intimidating."

"Intimidating?" The smallest hint of a smile crossed his expression, and I was almost giddy I had put it there.

"Yes." My answering grin was huge. "No offense, but you can seem a bit standoffish at times."

He rolled his beautiful eyes. "It doesn't really matter. Smiling isn't a big deal, no matter what other people say."

"But _I'd _like to see you smile," I murmured.

He blinked at me, and the silence that stretched over a span of a few minutes was a little awkward. And then, he smiled, smiled for real; his eyes sparkled with happiness. "Well I'll be danged. No one's ever asked to see me smile before," he muttered, his voice so quiet I wondered if he was talking to himself.

I shrugged.

His grin melted away after a few seconds, though, replaced by the same indifferent expression he usually had on. I was sad at the loss, but I wasn't sure what possessed me to say what I did next.

"Maybe we should practice."

One silver eyebrow raised in question. "Practice what? Smiling?" He snorted.

I nodded. He shrugged slightly after a minute, and then he smiled slightly, but anyone could tell it wasn't genuine. "Like this?" he asked.

I shook my head. He tried again, and this time if was a little bigger, but still not sincere. I shook my head again, and he scowled. "It doesn't matter," he repeated.

Still overcome by this strange possessed feeling, my hands reached up without my conscious permission and rested on both sides of his face.

Again, the shocked look was amusing to me. Very slowly, savoring this moment, I placed my thumbs over the corners of his mouth and pushed up very gently. Slowly, but finally, he was smiling again, and this time it looked real.

But it was different from the first real smile; it was softer, gentler somehow. I myself am not exactly sure how a smile is gentle, but there was no other way to put it. My hands rested on his cheeks longer than they should have, but finally I had to move them back to my sides.

They were tingling with some kind of strange spark that was foreign to me; the sensation wasn't unpleasant at all. I looked away from him, desperate to hide the longing in my eyes.

"I think I should go now," I whispered almost inaudibly.

Somehow he heard, and when I glanced back, he was nodding.

"Yeah." He said this softly, and there was some other emotion in his voice that I couldn't make out.

It frustrated me. "You'll be around tomorrow?" I checked as I got my coat.

He frowned. "No – Mirabelle doesn't need any more work done this week, there's some important business in the city I have to look into, so I'm heading back early. I'm catching the ferry out of here later tonight, around ten." He pulled his black hat down over his eyes again.

I wished he wouldn't do that – I liked seeing his eyes.

I was more than a little disappointed, but I nodded, knowing nothing I could say would ever make him stay here. Why would he want to?

There was nothing here but an old, barren island that a couple people were building up, and who knows how long that'll take. I really didn't have anything – nothing but what was back up on my land and a few things in my old apartment I hadn't bothered going back to because nothing of any kind of importance was there.

These realizations pierced me through with sadness, and I left quickly after that, forgetting to apologize about leaving him with the dishes. I assumed either Julia or Mirabelle would be back soon, though; it was getting late, and he had to get back soon.

As I lay in bed that night, listening to rain hammering on my window, I couldn't shut my brain off. In the past, I daydreamed until I started to drift into unconsciousness.

I didn't think I had to worry about him having a romantic relationship with anyone in the city; Julia would have mentioned her, and besides, he kept to himself. I was comforted a little by this, but I was a little frightened about what lay ahead.

I had a lot of stress and pressure on my shoulders now, almost as much as I had in the city; raising crops, raising animals, planting the seeds of a new civilization.

And now there was the desire to become close to someone who certainly wasn't looking for anyone's company. This wasn't a job of course, just an aspiration, but it was rapidly become one of the most important things.

But when I told myself that I had so many other things I had to focus on, so many things to do, that I had no time for Vaughn, my mind shied away from the idea and I was again depressed.

So I was going to try.

Try to do what, I wasn't exactly sure. I had never been attracted to seemingly cryptic or mysterious guys; I was sure that this was not the reason I liked him.

He was quiet and sometimes cold to others, but I believed that there was a lot more to him than he let anyone see. And, okay, part of the draw was that I wanted to see who he really was behind the mask.

I would find out.


	8. Lanna

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harvest Moon **

_7. Lanna_

Fall became winter faster than I would have thought possible.

The fields iced over, and as I had predicted, there was absolutely nothing to do but fish. Gannon was done with Chen and Mirabelle's shops, and anyone could see that he had done a great job. Chen was selling grass now, chocolate, and bizarrely, tickets worth $10,000 or higher.

I spent a great deal of time with Denny because of the lessons he gave me. He didn't seem to mind; in fact he seemed genuinely delighted with our little get-togethers.

Vaughn still came to Sunny Island (ugh, what an awful name for an island) every Wednesday and Thursday, and he was actually rather . . . well, not _nice _to me, but decent. Much nicer than he was to anyone else here, not including Mirabelle.

I usually came down to the Animal Shop every Wednesday and Thursday, and at first I would always look for some kind of excuse. I didn't have any animals, so it wasn't like I could be buying animal food. And money was hard to get for me, especially this time of year.

But finally, one Wednesday I stomped down to Mirabelle's with no excuse in mind; why should I be looking for reasons? If I want him to like me, then he should know why I am there.

So when I got there, Julia asked me tactfully if there was something I wanted. Vaughn and Mirabelle were at the table, and Julia was running around the kitchen with some kind of rag thing.

Mirabelle opened the shop at exactly six thirty every morning, but she got up at five thirty for her coffee. I replied happily that I was here to see Vaughn, and looked over and smiled at him sweetly.

Again, his cheeks darkened slightly in color, the way I had seen them do just once before. After that, though, at least everyone knew why I was there.

It was Friday now, though, winter 14th, and I figured I would ask Gannon to build the coop on Monday; I had all the lumber now, I just needed a couple extra thousand dollars, and I would be set.

Charlie had taken to following me around some mornings, though, chattering my ear off about how he wanted the bridge to the Meadow really, _really _badly.

I let him do it for a while, but he got so annoying after a while. Finally, I just snapped and told him that if he wanted the bridge so badly, maybe _he _should save up the money to buy it.

He didn't follow be around anymore, and often I felt guilty because I had no doubt hurt his feelings. Gannon had informed all of us that his daughter, Eliza, was coming to live with him here on the island, and she was about Charlie's age, so at least he would have someone to play with now.

I had been a little skeptical at first, that Gannon had a daughter – and an "adorable" one at that. I would have to see it before I believed it.

The others were feeding me a lot more than I would have liked – at least during the other seasons, I could gather wild grasses and mushrooms to eat. Now, there was nothing but sparkling snow.

It was also difficult now to find lumber – sometimes the snow buried it completely and I had to dig it out. I told myself I would suck it up and give Gannon the ton of money needed to buy an Animal Barn without my providing the materials when the time came. I was so sick of lumber that if I saw another stick I was going to vomit.

During the day of the stew, I had promised myself I would talk to Julia about Vaughn, but for the longest time I never got the chance to because I was so _busy _all the time.

But finally I made time on the first day of winter and had found her wondering outside the house with a long pink scarf around her neck. Standing next to her was Elliot, and to my relief they were holding hands.

Elliot blushed a dark red when I came up next to them, but Julia didn't seem to mind my presence. She greeted me happily and commented on pretty the snow looked today.

The more time I spent around Julia the more I saw her optimistic side. Never dwelling on the negative, Julia looked on the bright side of all things, no matter how bad they seemed. She was sometimes refreshing to be around, what with Natalie's not-so-bright attitude.

I was a little hypocritical, though, for I myself was no optimist.

Elliot dropped Julia's hand and crossed them over his chest when he saw me coming. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at his wimpy-ness. Under his heavy winter coat, I saw that stupid green apron again. Did he never take it off?

His glasses were starting to fog over with the cold, and he muttered something about cleaning them before hurrying off to his house.

Julia invited me in; it was a Saturday then and Mirabelle was over at Taro's house, spending some more time with Felicia.

"They're so close now," Julia said merrily as she warmed up some tea for us. "It's so cute."

I agreed. Julia started humming an unfamiliar song. Though she was generally a happy person, it seemed to me that this morning she was even happier than normal.

"What's with you today?" I asked curiously.

She shrugged under her coat – not nearly as heavy and bulky as Elliot's, but lighter and much more fashionable. "Just spending time with Elliot – he's so sweet," she giggled.

"Whatever floats your boat, I guess," I muttered to her.

She laughed. "Not your type, eh?" She poured some tea for me into a dainty little rose cup.

"No, not at all," I told her, almost shuddering. "Way too dorky for me."

She still smiled. "So . . ." I said, trying to think of how to begin.

"Yes?" She sat down across from me, glancing at the clock on the wall.

"Vaughn's been nicer," I blurted out, unable to think of anything else.

She nodded thoughtfully. "Yes – it's very odd. He doesn't usually like people." She laughed yet again.

I usually liked happy people, but her enthusiasm was starting both annoy me and wear me out.

"And you seem to be…fine with it," I said tentatively.

She was suddenly serious, and I was left in bewilderment as I tried to figure out how she could change moods so quickly. "Yes, well, I was thinking . . ." she sighed. "If there's a chance Vaughn could be happy with someone, why not give it a chance? I can't ever picture him getting married or anything, but I would love to be proved wrong."

"I think you're getting a little ahead of yourself," I chuckled nervously. "I'm way too young to get married right now – I don't want to."

"I know. But later, in the future. We'll see." And then the look that came across her features was almost smug.

"What are you thinking?" I asked suspiciously.

"Nothing, nothing. I know Natalie will probably want to be your maid of honor, but I can I be a bridesmaid anyway?"

"Julia!" I exclaimed, sure I was blushing.

I got out of there quickly after that, not wanting to continue the conversation. It was way too soon to be even thinking about that sort of thing. I wouldn't, I wouldn't . . .

I told myself this to this day.

It became my mantra now, because Julia had planted a seed in my head that I couldn't remove, no matter how hard I tried. I thought about it often now, getting married . . . to a certain silver-haired cowboy.

I even dreamed about it now, and they were very pleasant, complete with a long white dress and black tuxedos, but I was angrier now with Julia than I had ever been.

I didn't want to think about it now, not when I had so many other things to do.

So now I blocked the mental images from my mind, even when there was a slight inkling of a chance one would pop up.

***

I hated alarm clocks.

There was nothing I wanted to do more the next Saturday morning than smash it to bits, but then I would have to buy another one. I had complained often enough to Taro about getting up so early, especially when I didn't even have much to do, but he said it was best I got in the habit now, the better to be used to it later.

Sometimes I think he thinks he's my boss, or my father or something of the sort. But I know his intentions are good, so I hold my tongue. I had a reason to get up this morning, at least.

A girl, Lanna, had written to say she was going to be moving in. Her letter said she was a one-hit-wonder pop star and that she was looking for some peace and quiet.

Gannon had a house already built – once he got started on something, it seemed like he never stopped for anything or anyone. Anyway, she was supposed to be arriving very early in the morning and I had been 'assigned' the duty to go meet her.

It was thought to be a little overwhelming if we all gathered down at the beach, and against my protests, I was hurrying down to the beach to meet the pop star.

She would be pretty, I was sure; most in the singing business aren't dog-ugly. The cold air stung my face and hair, as I had hurriedly taken a shower before heading out. I pulled the hood over my ears, but it did little to help my face.

I would have to ask Chen if he could order me a heavier jacket, because the last thing I needed right now was to get sick from the cold wind. I stood there for a little over ten minutes before the boat appeared.

It was sleek and stylish, and the driver parked right alongside the dock before carrying suitcase after suitcase onto the dock.

_She doesn't travel light_, I thought to myself. Finally, after the seventh suitcase and fourth trunk had been deposited, the driver tipped his hat to me, and hurried back on board. Onto the dock came a slim blonde girl with pale skin and a beautiful white coat.

"Thanks, Leo, I'll see you later!" She blew him a kiss before stepping off the boat.

The driver named Leo nodded his head once, revved the engine, and disappeared quicker than I would have thought possible.

The girl also wore elbow-length gloves and tan expensive-looking boots. Being a pop star probably paid a lot, I supposed. I really hoped she wasn't the snobby better-than-you type, so I was reassured when she smiled a broad grin at me.

"Hello, you must be a resident here. I'm Lanna, and I'm coming to live here. Perhaps you read my note?" her voice was hopeful.

I nodded. "Yes, I did. Welcome, Lanna."

I stared down at all her heavy-looking bags. "We'll probably need some help," I chuckled.

She blushed and looked slightly embarrassed. "I'm sorry about all this, but there are so many things I just can't seem to be without, and my little sister kept giving me crap about leaving her 'wonderful gifts' behind." She gave a sour look.

I nodded and shivered again as the next blustery wind fell over us. "You look terribly cold. Here, take this."

She opened the trunk nearest to her and pulled out a coat that was almost identical to hers, although it was darker and not as heavy, but still warm-looking.

"Oh no, I couldn't," I said.

"Here, here, take it," Lanna insisted

. I slid my arms into it and was instantly warm and grateful. "Thank you, Lanna," I sighed. "Come on, let's go get some help."

As we walked back into the main part of town, I said, "I'm Chelsea, by the way, the rancher around here."

Her eyes lit up. "You have a farm? Like with animals and stuff? My aunt has one, too. I used to visit her before I became a pop star, and I loved to ride around on her horse."

I laughed. "Sorry, but I'm just starting out. I don't have a single chicken right now," I told her.

She grimaced, but she shrugged. "Oh, okay."

I went to Gannon's newly-built house now. His had been small at first, but he had expended after Eliza said she was coming to live with him. She would be here any day – I had never seen Gannon so happy. He was sitting behind his counter now, measuring a long piece of wood.

"Hey, Chelsea. Hey . . ." he trailed off when he saw the unfamiliar face behind me.

"This is Lanna – our newest resident," I reminded him.

"Oh yeah," he remembered.

It was easy enough to convince him to come help, and Chen and Charlie came along, too. It wasn't easy to lug all those heavy bags all the way to West Town, but Julia and Elliot came out of Taro's house when they saw us all through the window.

Julia was friends with Lanna before we were halfway there; they were clicking just as easily as Natalie and I had, and, by the look of it, it seemed Lanna was optimistic, too.

Great, I thought, now they can be all merry and giggly together.

Lanna's house had been furnished before she even arrived, and it was clear to me instantly that Lanna was no tomboy. Like Julia's room, it was pink all over, with flowers and teddy bears. But there were other things, too, odd things like records hanging on the wall, and pages full of autographs from people I've never heard of.

A big desk held on it a lot of the gifts Lanna's adoring fans had given her, with trinkets and snow globes. These things were all very predictable to me, but in the back of her house behind the table I was surprised to see four sturdy, expensive-looking fishing poles locked in a glass cabinet.

"You like fishing?" I asked her curiously.

"Oh yes," she said absentmindedly as she hung her coat.

Chen, Charlie, Gannon, Elliot and Julia had all left, and I had been about to when I noticed her gear. I smiled happily at her. "You'll like Denny then – he's a pro fisherman."

"Really?" Her eyes lit up again, and she reminded me of a cheerful little five-year-old.

"Yes – I'm surprised he didn't come out to meet us." But then again, Denny usually isn't up until seven or eight.

"You'll have to introduce me," Lanna said.

I agreed and offered her the coat. She shook her head. "Keep it – I have, like, four and you look like you need it anyway."

Her comment stung a little, and I knew she hadn't meant anything critical, but it still got under my skin anyway.

"Thanks," I almost snapped before heading out the door.

***

As I had predicted, I got the money for a chicken coop that Monday. Gannon was a little annoyed when I gave him the money and materials; he had expected Eliza to be here by now.

"I'm sure she'll be here soon, Gannon," I told him.

He sighed. "Yes, well, I ought to have this done by tomorrow. See ya later, Chelsea," he said glumly.

I left then, figuring he wanted to be alone. I had introduced Lanna to Denny last Sunday, the day after she arrived, and they had instantly liked each other.

"We should go fishing sometime," she told him, a little flirtatiously.

He nodded, completely missing it altogether. "Yeah, that'd be fun. I've already taught Chelsea over there some of the finer points of fishing," he had said proudly.

I had rolled my eyes and said "whatever", but in a fond voice.

Lanna had laughed and proclaimed, "If we go fishing together, it'll be me teaching _you _all about fishing, Denny."

He blinked at her and then a smug look came into his eyes. "We'll see about _that,_" he'd said boldly.

"I wouldn't be so confident, Lanna," I had told her, "When it comes to fishing, Denny's a master."

Lanna had rolled her eyes and said, "we'll see" as Denny had.

I left them alone after that, afraid they would start randomly making out while I was still there. In the time I had spent with him, Denny seemed to me like a brother, so watching him kiss someone would probably gross me out.

I introduced Lanna to everyone else; Chen, Charlie, Taro, Elliot, Natalie, Felicia and Mirabelle. Something happened at Mirabelle's though, that made me dislike Lanna greatly.

While we were there, Julia told her about her cowboy cousin, who was the animal dealer for the island. She pulled out her scruffy old wallet and pulled out a small picture and showed it to her.

"This is him," she said.

Lanna studied the picture for a lot longer than I liked before she laughed and said, "Very sexy."

I bit my lip to stop myself from yelling obscenities at her. Julia quickly took back the picture after glancing at my expression.

"Yes, well, he's taken," Julia told her.

Lanna blinked and sighed. "They always are."

She looked down and began rifling around her purse for her mascara, which was, according to her, 'wearing down'. I gave Julia a questioning look when I caught her eye, and she just smiled and mouthed 'you're welcome'.

I gave her a dirty look as Lanna sat down at the table with her little mirror.

Why anyone needed to wear makeup here was beyond me, but maybe I had been hanging around Natalie and her tomboy-ish attitude way too much. It didn't seem to me, however, that Vaughn liked the giggly girlie-girl thing, much to my relief, as I just wasn't that kind of person, and never would be.

I went over to Natalie's house that night to vent and whine. I told her the whole story of what had happened.

Natalie was surprisingly defensive over the new girl. "Well, how is she supposed to know that you're into him?"

"She wouldn't," I snapped, "I'm just _saying_" –

"Well, what you're saying doesn't make sense," she snapped right back.

I leaned back in the chair, fuming. "I wouldn't have come over if I'd known you were going to be like this, Nat. Why are you being so _mean?_"

She sighed. "Nothing. I'm sorry. It's just that Elliot and Julia are officially dating now and . . ." she trailed off unhappily.

She had been mean when I talked to her about my problems, so I wanted to hurt her right back.

"I don't think its Elliot you're worried about at all, Natalie. I think you're just jealous your brother's found a nice person to be with and you've still got nobody."

She recoiled from me like I'd slapped her. I might as well have.

She stood up, her eyes blazing with an anger I'd never seen directed at me before. She stabbed her index finger toward the door and snarled at me, "Get out."

I got up and yanked the door open before muttering, "Whatever, Nat" and leaving.

I was faced with a predicament later that evening, however – Felicia had invited me over for dinner this evening, and I was definitely hungry. I decided I would go anyway, even though I was pissed and Natalie was pissed we could get over it long enough to shove food into our mouths and give each other grudging goodbyes.

Out of spite, I left the pretty white coat at my farmhouse and hurried to Felicia's in my light not-so-warm jacket. I stomped my way to the small house and made myself knock lightly on the door.

Taro opened it, his eyes sleepy and his voice tired. "Over there, little missy; I'll be seeing you." He went back into the bedroom.

"I think he's getting sick – he's out in the cold way too much," Felicia said worriedly.

"Did he already eat?" I checked.

"Yes, I made him eat before you came over. But sit down, sit down, child, you must be famished."

"Yes," I agreed.

I sat down next to Elliot, across from Natalie. She stared down at her bowl, silently seething. We all ate in the tense atmosphere for a full fifteen minutes before I cracked and asked Natalie to talk to me somewhere else.

She reluctantly joined me on a short walk around the main part of town. We walked in silence for a while before I realized she wasn't going to say anything. Though it irked me to be the one to begin, I did it anyway.

"I'm sorry for this afternoon, Natalie. I know you're not jealous over Elliot's happiness." My soft words seemed to break through her icy exterior.

She sighed, her breath blowing out in front of her in a cold mist. "I am, a little. I think I got so angry with you because what you said is right. I _do _still worry about the other thing, though."

I nodded thoughtfully. "Julia doesn't seem like the type of girl who sleeps around, you know? I think she's in it for the long run."

Natalie's nose wrinkled. "If they got married, she'd be my sister-in-law, wouldn't she?"

I laughed. "Yeah, I guess so."

She poked my arm. "Don't be so smug. If you marry your cowboy, you'll be her cousin-in-law."

"Is there such a thing?" I asked.

"If there isn't, there should be," she muttered.

We walked a little while more before she sighed again. "I'm sorry for snapping at you like that; I was just so focused on my problems." She smiled. "I'd bet it got you pretty annoyed, though, when Lanna said that about your man."

I rolled my eyes. "He's not mine, Nat." I said, and the sadness in my voice was obvious, even to me.

"But he will be," Natalie said confidently, "I just know it."

"And I know you're going to meet someone, too," I told her, "Someone who can see past your . . . uh, rough surface."

She smacked me lightly. "I don't have a 'rough surface'," she informed me, but her face was sour. I snorted and rolled my eyes.

"Sure, Natalie."

We walked back into Taro's house and sat on the counter. Felicia and Elliot were still eating; they didn't seem to notice when we came back in the house. Natalie pulled out a bag of mushrooms that she said she'd gathered last fall.

"We have a fridge – they're totally fresh," she told me when I objected.

So we took turns eating the mushrooms, and they didn't taste bad at all. I grabbed the last one before she could, and popped it into my mouth.

But when I bit down on it the flavor was all wrong. It tasted a lot different than the others had, and when I swallowed it I started to get all dizzy.

My vision seemed to blur and twist, and suddenly everyone's voices seemed very far away.

Natalie had been snapping something at her brother, but when she saw me swaying on the counter she looked alarmed and asked, "Are you okay, Chelsea?"

I didn't answer her; I could barely make out her voice.

I managed to slide off the counter onto my knees before I was overcome by another wave of dizziness and I blacked out.


	9. Arguments

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Harvest Moon **_

_8. Arguments _

When I woke up, I really wasn't all there in the head.

My mind seemed to be filled with some kind of fog, thicker and harder to focus through than the kind I had experienced when I first washed up on this beach. For a few seconds, I just sort of drifted in my mind, partially conscious, not really thinking about anything.

But as time passed, things started to become clearer.

Not everything, but the small things; a door being open, water dripping from a facet, the shuffling of feet . . . . I heard a voice long before I was able to make sense of the words. At first all I heard was a vague mumbling, and I wasn't really listening; I was so tired, and all I wanted to do was go back to sleep.

My stomach was hurting, to the point of nausea, but I couldn't find my lips to groan in pain. It must have been a full half hour I lay there only somewhat conscious until things started to get comprehensible.

"Chelsea . . . Chelsea, can you hear me?" a voice asked.

I didn't even bother trying to think about who it was. I was annoyed I was waking up; things were so much more peaceful in sleep.

But the voice was becoming more urgent, more concerned, so I felt compelled to answer it. This time I found my voice, but that might just have been because I was really trying.

"Yes . . . yes, I can," I mumbled.

Two hands fell to my shoulders and shook me a little, which only irritated me and my stomach further. My eyes opened and focused on a face framed by red hair, held back with a headband. Natalie.

"Is she awake?" a much older voice came from behind her. Taro.

"Is she all right?" I heard Felicia call in concern.

Elliot came into the room and stood next to his sister, smiling down at me with his friendly smile.

I opened my mouth to say something – I'm not sure exactly what – but when I suddenly got the urge to gag, I realized hanging around talking to people might not be the best idea. I got to my feet and swayed dizzily for a few seconds, but I didn't pause for long.

Natalie held out her hands, presumably to steady me, but I shoved past her and her brother, narrowly avoiding running into Taro, who stood in the hall with his gnarled old cane.

"What the" – I heard Natalie curse.

I clutched my stomach and prayed I could make it to their pint-sized bathroom. By some miracle, I did. It wasn't pleasant, throwing up for the next several minutes. The acid burned my throat coming up.

Natalie came in and, though her nose was wrinkled in disgust, she held my hair back for me. When I was through, I drug myself to the sink to wash my mouth out, but it did little to ease the acid-y burn.

"Want some water?" Natalie offered.

I managed to nod before she ran off to the kitchen. Taro came and offered me his hand, and I took it, though I was wary my weight might topple the short old man. He managed to get me to my feet, though, and steady me when I swayed dangerously again.

Serious déjà vu from when I was washed up on the beach – just without the puking and it wasn't my muscles aching all over.

My head ached now, but at least the dizziness was just about gone. My stomach hurt, too, but not as badly as it had before.

When I got out of the bathroom, I was unsure of which way to go. Natalie came back with a tall glass of water in her hand, and then she jerked her thumb over her shoulder into the bedroom.

I smiled at her gratefully and when to lie on her bed. She handed me the water; I chugged it happily. When I handed her the glass back, her expression was surprisingly sheepish.

"I'm really sorry, Chels. I think you ate a bad mushroom. I must have picked a wrong one by mistake."

"Lucky it wasn't poisonous," Elliot muttered.

Natalie gave him a dirty look, and he sighed and stared out the window, in the direction of the Animal Shop. I groaned again.

"S'okay, Nat. Just don't do it again," I warned her, "Or I'll find a poisonous mushroom for _you._"

She stuck her tongue out at me like a five-year-old. Though I still felt awful, I remembered a few things that had to be done. "Elliot," I said.

He looked at me, fidgeting with his apron. I wanted to burn it. "Yes?"

"Gannon's supposed to have my chicken coop build by today. Could you go find him?"

Elliot did not seem happy about this particular chore, but he went out willingly enough. Taro came over to stand next to Natalie and smiled.

"Heard about your new coop. Bought a baby chick from Mirabelle. She was supposed to bring it over for you today, but I'll get her to hold it till you're better, little Missy." His voice was hoarser than it usually was, and I worried about him going out in the cold, even if Mirabelle was living next door.

"No, I'll do that," Felicia said hurriedly as she pulled on a coat. "You lie down – you're sick, too."

"I ain't sick," Taro muttered, but he went to sit on the bed across from me.

Natalie, Taro and I sat in a quiet silence for a while, though I was refraining from the urge to groan the whole time.

"Better be careful 'bout which mushrooms you pick from now on, Natalie," Taro told her.

She pursed her lips in irritation. "I know, Gramps, I know."

***

I was in Natalie's bed all day. I had to throw up another time in the early evening, but I supposed the puking was good; all the bad mushroom crap was probably out of my system by now.

Taro supplied minimal small talk; his throat was hurting him, too, though his didn't hurt because of acid coming up. "Breeze is telling me it'll snow tomorrow," he muttered at one point.

"Hmm," I muttered back. At least it wasn't his thumb or eyebrows telling him that.

In the early afternoon, Elliot had returned and told me Gannon understood I was sick, but he said that the coop was done and ready to hold chickens.

"I took the liberty of ordering a few pieces of food for the chick, too," Taro told me then, "And Gannon put them in the feed dispenser."

I nodded and thanked him for his consideration, but that was all I could manage. Mirabelle had agreed to hold the chick, to my relief.

Around seven at night, after Felicia had made me hold down a small bowl of soup. The whole day was absolutely miserable. In the morning, though, I insisted to a wary Felicia that I had to go home.

"I'll come with you," Natalie told me. She never _asked _if she could come over now; it was just something she did randomly.

"Oh no you're not," said Taro. Thankfully, the old man was feeling better as well, or at least that's what he told everyone.

"Yeah, Natalie, we're getting a new shipment today; there's lots of work to do," Elliot reminded her.

Natalie gave him a dirty look. "Why don't you ask your _girlfriend _to help you?" she snapped.

Elliot stared at the floor.

"Natalie, that's enough now," Felicia scolded, "You live here, too – now help your brother with the work right now." Natalie gave me a miserable look when she thought her mother wasn't looking.

"Don't forget to pick up that chick from Mirabelle," Taro reminded me as I pulled on my jacket, wishing I have the heavy one Lanna had given me.

"Yeah, yeah," I muttered before leaving.

The walk to Mirabelle's was short, of course, but the air was still blisteringly cold and it stung my face. I ducked into the Animal Shop gratefully, only to remember what I had stupidly forgotten.

It was Wednesday today – which explained why Vaughn was talking with Mirabelle.

It didn't explain, however, why he looked so angry.

As I already knew, Vaughn wasn't exactly Mr. Sunshine, but this was different. He looked flat out _mad. _And, to be honest, a little scary, too.

I was about to turn and leave, but Julia caught sight of me and beckoned me over, her face almost desperate. I walked up to the three of them cautiously.

"It's just irresponsible," Vaughn was saying, "Downright _stupid . . ._"

"What's stupid?" I interrupted.

Vaughn apparently hadn't noticed my walking up to them. He whirled around to face me, eyes blazing. "Did Natalie give you a poisonous mushroom last Monday?" he demanded.

I was taken aback. Was _this _why he was so furious? "Well, I wouldn't say it was _poisonous,_" I said, wanting to defend my friend, "It was just, well, bad. It made me sick for a few days, but I'm alright now . . ." I started to sound like I was babbling, but it was easy to feel intimidated by his expression.

Without another word to me, he stormed out the door, resolve in his eyes.

"Where's he going?" I asked suspiciously.

"Probably over to Taro's house," Mirabelle sighed.

"_What?_" I said, aghast.

"We were talking," Julia told me, her eyes on the door her cousin had just slammed, "And I just mentioned to him that you were sick. He immediately wanted to know why. I told him that Natalie accidentally gave you a bad mushroom . . ." she trailed off.

"But why is he so angry?" I wondered.

Julia shrugged. "I have no idea."

"Well, someone should go over there before he does something stupid," Mirabelle said, "I can't go – I have to run the shop, you know. But you can go, Chelsea. Don't forget to come get the baby chick afterwards – it's adorable." Her voice turned loving.

I nodded and started for the door.

"Just a minute!" Julia objected, grabbing my arm.

I halted for a second while she yanked her coat of the coat rack. "I'm coming with you," she explained to me.

I shrugged and opened the door. I didn't even feel the cold air this time as we hurried over to Taro's house – I was almost dragging Julia along in my attempt to rush.

When we got into the house, it was worse that I feared – Vaughn was in Natalie's face, yelling.

Natalie was never one to get emotional – I doubted the girl had cried once in her entire life. She responded with anger, not tears. But right now she appeared to be too perplexed to act like her usual self.

"Vaughn!" I almost shouted, and hurried over to stand in front of Natalie. "What is going _on?_"

Natalie answered before he could.

Taro, Felicia, and Elliot were standing a few feet away, all of them with the same surprised face as Natalie. Elliot had a good-sized crate of something at his feet – I guessed he had dropped it, because it wasn't sitting right-side up.

Natalie's surprise was melting away; replaced by the fury I knew had been coming. "I don't _know,_" she snapped, "I was helping Elliot with some crates when this jerk suddenly stormed in and was in my face."

Vaughn was still fuming. I was still bewildered. "I don't understand. What's wrong with you?" The question came out a lot harsher than I have meant it to.

Julia came over and stood next to me, staring at her cousin disapprovingly. Vaughn didn't look at us. He was still glaring at Natalie, but it wasn't as vicious as before.

"It was just irresponsible and stupid," he repeated the words from when he was in the Animal Shop, "To give Chelsea a bad mushroom. If you don't know which ones to pick, you shouldn't be foraging in the first place. Do you realize you could have picked up something that could have _killed _her?" Vaughn's tone was just as harsh as mine had been.

Natalie's eyes narrowed. "It was a mistake. It could have happened to anyone. Like you would know what to pick, cowboy!"

Felicia moved over to put her hand on Natalie's arm, probably wanting to defuse the tension around us.

"That's why I don't forage," Vaughn told her.

I decided it was time to interrupt. "Vaughn, Natalie already said she was sorry. It wasn't like she was intentionally trying to hurt me. It won't happen again."

"No, it won't," Vaughn said, with finality in his voice.

There was a bit of an awkward silence, and I thought everything was going to be fine, but of course Natalie felt the need to butt in and get the last word. "Since when is it any of _your _business what does and doesn't happen to Chelsea? Why do you even care?" Natalie didn't sound as angry anymore, just annoyed.

Vaughn blinked, and looked down at me when he answered her. "I don't know." It seemed like he was speaking to himself more than the rest of us. For a minute, he looked almost confused, but still utterly beautiful.

And then, as I was used to now, he turned and abruptly and started walking away. But just before he disappeared out the door, he turned one more time and muttered to Natalie, "Just be more careful about what you pick."

And then he was gone.

Julia sighed. "Sorry about that," she said to Nat's family.

Taro was frowning unhappily at the door. "Ought to teach that boy some respect. Ain't polite to just barge into someone's home and get in their face."

"He had reason," I said defensively.

Taro wasn't in the mood for an argument. He lifted his hair and waved it, dismissing what I had said. "Doesn't matter now. Alright, people, show's over – back to work!" Taro barked at his family.

Elliot groaned, but reached down to pick up the heavy crate.

"I have to go and get my baby chick," I told Taro, "but after I get him settled in, I'll come back and help you."

"No, no. You probably got things to do, what with being away for two days." Felicia said, beginning to fill her sink to do the dishes.

I laughed at that. "There aren't any crops to water or harvest this time of year. But I guess I could chop up some lumber – I figure I can gather enough by sometime in mid-spring and have enough for a discount when I buy a barn."

Taro's eyes lit up. "Yes, well, go on and do it. The sooner it's done the better."

I smiled at him nicely before Julia and I slipped out the door. Just before she closed it however, Julia mouthed something to Elliot, and he blushed. I wanted to know what she said, but it seemed impolite to ask.

When we got outside, I noticed something. In the distance, if I squinted through the falling snow, I could see a vague shape out at the beach.

It might have been Denny, fishing even in this bitter cold, but I didn't think it was. If Vaughn wasn't at the Animal Store, he was generally at the beach, and something tells me he didn't go back to his Aunt's.

I sighed and stared off in that general direction before Julia pulled on my shirt sleeve. "Come on, Chelsea, it's way cold out here."

I nodded, but I still walked slower than she would have liked. If I kept thinking about why my being sick bothered Vaughn so much, I would go insane…and probably get some ideas that would turn out to be absolutely incorrect.

But my stupid mind had already come up with ideas I found very appealing. Maybe he was so angry with Natalie because he cared if I was sick. Maybe he cared that I was sick because he cared about _me. _Maybe . . .

"Okay, Chelsea, here's your little chick. You have some feed, right?"

I hadn't noticed when I walked into the Animal Shop, deep in thought as I was, but Mirabelle was holding out a small brown box with air holes. I took it from her carefully. I was suddenly very nervous. "You know, Mirabelle, I've never raised any kind of animal before."

Mirabelle waved her hand in the same dismissive motion Taro had. "Oh, chickens are very easy, dear. Feed them. Love them. Protect them. That's all there is to it."

I wished she was more specific. She noticed the distressed expression. "Well, if you would like, my dear, I'm sure Vaughn wouldn't mind telling you a few things." She took the box from my hands. "He works with animals all the time, you know. Go find him and then come back to get the chick – I don't want her in the cold any longer than she has to be."

Julia nodded in agreement. "I'm pretty sure he's at the beach – he loves it there, you know."

I pulled the jacket tighter around myself, said goodbye, and then left. I had mixed feelings about seeing Vaughn right now. I generally always wanted to see him, but I needed to figure some things out – I felt like if I heard any more my head would go into overload.

But the side of me that wanted to see him won, and I walked quickly down to the sandy beach. When I squinted through the falling snow this time, however, I saw not one but two figures standing on the shore.

The purple bandana alerted me instantly that the second person was Denny, a fancy-looking fishing pole in his hands.

As I got closer to them, within earshot, I saw that their conversation was rather serious.

"So you never knew your parents either, huh?" Denny was saying, his voice so quiet I barely heard it.

"No. Never had anyone but myself to rely on," Vaughn said matter-of-factly.

He didn't sound sad. I was processing this when Denny's black bird, Poppy, saw me. I hadn't known until a while ago that Denny had brought his pet with him to the Island, but I saw it around him constantly now.

It opened its beak and let out a very loud squawk, and Denny and Vaughn turned instantly to see what its problem was. I cursed the bird in my head. It had never liked me.

"Were you listening to us just now?" Vaughn asked, annoyed.

"No. Well, I mean, yes, but I . . ." I trailed off like a babbling moron again.

Denny was more polite about it. "It's alright, Chelsea. Something you need?"

I nodded in embarrassment. "Vaughn, would you please come back to the Animal Shop for a minute? I need some advice concerning animals."

Vaughn still looked irritated, but he sighed and started walking.

I was about to follow, but then I heard Denny sigh. I turned back to him curiously.

"I'm a little worried about him," Denny said, so quietly I knew it was meant for only me to hear.

"Since when are you two BFFs?" I asked.

He smiled at my joke. "I told you I could get along with anyone."

"No, I believe you said you could make anyone laugh," I reminded him.

Denny shrugged. "More or less the same thing."

I smiled at him and gave a little half-wave before turning, prepared to hurry because I figured Vaughn would have been almost there by now. But to my surprise, he was waiting about ten feet ahead. I hadn't expected him to wait for me, but he was.

He still looked annoyed, but it didn't matter. I couldn't blame him for being mad about my eavesdropping on a serious conversation he was having.

But he was being polite now, despite the attitude. I couldn't help myself; I gave him a very wide smile before passing him on my way to the Shop, knowing he would follow.

I led the way there, but when I glanced inconspicuously over my shoulder, I saw that he was smiling, too.


	10. Almost

**Disclaimer: I do not own HM **

_9. Almost_

He held the door of the Animal Shop open for me when we got there, another big surprise. Maybe I was starting to get past the moody cowboy that everyone else saw.

I couldn't let myself hope, though. Hoping is dangerous; I had learned that through previous experience. So I was trying not to think about it when Mirabelle put the box not in my hands, but in Vaughn's.

"Go on, now – I have a shop to run," Mirabelle said.

For a second, it looked like he was going to object, but Julia gave him a dirty look and he closed his mouth. "Come on," he muttered to me.

I said goodbye to Julia and her mother again before we left. I walked beside him this time on the way back to my land.

I had a lot of questions for him, but I held my tongue. I knew he wasn't all that pleasant to talk to when he was irritated.

Besides, I was still thinking about what I had overhead at the beach. I had already known Denny didn't know his parents when he was growing up, but his Aunt and Uncle had raised him, and his parents died when Denny was very young, and so it didn't really bother him because he didn't remember them.

But Vaughn might have had a totally different situation. Maybe they died when he was much older than Denny had been. Maybe they were still alive and just hadn't wanted him. The latter seemed more likely; maybe if that had happened to me in the past, I would be cold and rude to most people as well.

I wondered idly if there would ever come a time when he would be comfortable enough with me to tell me about his past. I hoped there would.

Vaughn didn't seem as annoyed by the time we reached my newly built coop. We walked inside, and I opened the little box.

nside was a little, very adorable, yellow ball of fuzz. I reached down and held her up. She chirped at me, probably happy to be out of the small box.

"Hello, little birdie," I said to her.

She chirped again, as if in reply. I laughed softly. "Am I holding her right?" I asked. I was on my knees with the little bird, so I had to look up at him as I asked this.

He wasn't frowning, but he wasn't smiling. He actually looked like he was deep in thought. But when I asked him, he pulled the hat down over his beautiful eyes and said, "Yes, that's right."

I set the little chick down, and she started wandering around.

Vaughn showed me the feed dispenser, and told me each chicken ate one piece a day. I got one out and put it in the square wooden feeder. The little bird looked at the food for a second, but then she ignored it and went about her wondering.

"Must not be hungry," I mumbled.

"Ought to give her a name," he suggested.

I thought for a minute. "How about Nugget?" I asked.

He snorted. "You planning on eating her?" he sounded amused, and when I looked over, he was smiling slightly, too.

"No," I laughed, "It just makes sense. Chicken _nugget._"

He pretended to look suspicious. I laughed again and slapped his shoulder lightly.

"I'm not going to eat her!" I insisted. He smiled wider now.

"See? That's what I was talking about," I murmured.

He looked bewildered. "What?"

"Remember that day we were cleaning up after Felicia made the stew? When we practiced smiling?"

He rolled his eyes. "Yeah."

"Well, that's the smile I was talking about. When we practiced, you kept giving me all these weak, insincere smiles. But that one; that was real."

He shrugged. "Yeah, well, only a few people can make me actually _want _to smile."

I stared at him for a few seconds, and he stared back. "Oh really? And I'm one of those people?" I finally asked.

"I guess so," he mumbled.

The next silence was short, but very awkward. I couldn't find words to speak; I was very happy, though.

He finally cleared his throat, and then started telling me about chickens. "Chickens are pretty simple to take care of. Make sure they have feed every day. When the weather is nice, let them out – they can get their own food outside. They'll probably like you more if you let them outside. Don't forget to bring them in at night, though – wild dogs come around sometimes, so if you forget, you got yourself a dead chicken." He shuddered as if we were talking about an awful crime.

I realized that while he was not so social when it came to people, he really and genuinely loved the animals he worked with. I thought that was very sweet.

"Before you let them out, though," he continued, "It would be wise to build a fence out of lumber or material stone. I mean, if you came back from wherever to put your chicken back, it would be convenient for you if you know where it is."

I nodded. That made sense.

"Fences – good, strong ones – will also protect chickens from the wild dogs. But once you get a whole lot of them – say, six or so – it would be smart to get a dog of your own to protect them. After all, even if the fence protects the chickens, it doesn't keep a wild dog from scaring a chicken. If you had a dog of your own, it could probably drive off the wild one before it started scaring all your chickens. Of course, the dog you buy probably won't do that unless it likes you enough. A lot of an animal's behavior, and the quality of whatever it produces, it based on how much it likes you." It was the longest speech I had ever heard him make. But he had been working with animals for a long time, so he would know these things.

"Vaughn, how old are you?" I asked before I could stop myself.

He blinked at and looked confused for a brief second at my abrupt question, but then he answered gruffly, "Twenty five. Why?"

I shrugged. "You just seem to know a lot about this stuff."

"Yes. . ." He trailed off before asking, "How old are _you_?"

"Twenty," I answered promptly.

He nodded as if he had suspected as much. "Did you understand everything I told you?"

"Yes, Vaughn, I understand," I said, a little exasperated, "I'm not stupid, you know."

"I know, I know," he said quickly. Then he looked remorseful. "I apologize. I just like to make sure all the animals Mirabelle sells go to good homes, with capable owners."

"I've always wanted to work on a ranch," I told him, "I need to learn these things. I'll take good care of Nugget, I promise." She chirped over by the water container, as if backing me up. I smiled.

He nodded once. "I'd better go now; I have work to do," he said.

But just as he reached the door, I said, "Vaughn, wait."

He hesitated, and turned back to me. I had realized previously that I wouldn't figure any of my probing questions out unless I actually got a few answers from him. "I . . ." I wasn't sure how to begin. "Why . . . why did you get so upset with Natalie today? I mean, I appreciate your concern, it's just that . . . well, I just wonder why it mattered to you so much that I was sick."

He pulled the hat down over his face again, making it difficult for me to see his expression beneath the shadow. He was quiet for a minute while he thought.

"I'm not really sure. I . . . I surprised myself, reacting like that. I . . ." I waited for a minute while he struggled with words. "I feel relaxed when I'm around you," he finally said, "Well, more than that, really. I guess I feel…_happy._"

He sounded like he was amazed, as if the idea had seemed ludicrous to him at first.

"Oh," I said. The word was inadequate, but what else to say? "I like being around you, too," I finally managed. I walked over so I was standing right in front of him. It allowed me to see his face better.

He still looked amazed; it was funny. Tentatively, I reached out and took his hand. I waited for a second, wondering if he would pull it away. He didn't.

And then he did something that amazed _me. _He reached up the hand I wasn't holding and placed it against the side of my face. I was too stunned to move, not that I would have anyway. I could see his intentions in his eyes, and I found I was quite unable to breathe.

I had wanted this for a long time, but now that it was actually going to happen, I was almost panicked.

But just as he was bending down to kiss me, the door opened, forcing us both to just back. I cursed whoever had opened the door and ruined the moment.

The figure bundled up in a big coat, a scarf, boots and gloves was so big it could only be Gannon. He came through the door way, and I saw that he was holding hands with a girl that looked to be about nine. She was also wearing a coat, scarf and gloves. She had a very pretty face – big blue eyes, long blonde curls, beaming smile.

"Real blustery out there," Gannon muttered before closing the door of the coop.

The little blonde girl walked over to Nugget and smiled at her. "Hello, little birdie," she said in a high, sweet voice.

Vaughn looked irritated, but he couldn't possibly be as annoyed as I was.

Gannon noticed our expressions. "Sorry to interrupt," he said quickly.

I forced a smile. "It's alright, Gannon. Who is this?" I asked, gesturing to the adorable little girl. She looked up and smiled at me.

"This is Eliza, my daughter. She's coming to live with me on the island. I expanded my house," Gannon explained.

Eliza walked to stand next to her father. I looked first at her, and then her father, trying to find some similarities, but failing. Gannon laughed. "I know – hard to believe, ain't it?"

"I don't look anything like my Dad," Eliza said, though it was already obvious.

"No, you don't," I agreed.

I held out my hand, and she shook it. "Come talk to me if you ever need any beauty tips," she said suddenly.

I blinked at her. "Do you think I need them?" I asked stupidly.

She laughed. "No, no, you look good. Not as good as me, but who does?"

I instantly realized that this little girl was vain. Not that surprising. Eliza looked over at Vaughn. "Is he your boyfriend?" she asked me curiously.

I blushed, and when I glanced over at Vaughn, it looked like he was too – which explained why he pulled his hat down again.

"No, he's not," I said. I really hoped none of them could detect the slight sadness in my voice.

"But it looked like he was going to kiss you before we got in here – I saw through the window," Eliza said. I blushed a deeper red.

"No, no, Eliza, Vaughn was just telling me about how to take care of a chicken. He's the island's animal dealer."

She was instantly distracted. "Oh, Daddy! Can we get a puppy? Or a kitty? Please, please, oh please?" She looked up at him, her bottom lip jutting out slightly.

Gannon gave me a questioning look, probably about what Eliza had said, about Vaughn almost kissing me. I shrugged very slightly and looked out the window. "Not right now, honey. Maybe in a year or two."

Eliza pouted. "But Daddy," she persisted, "I _really _want one."

"Soon, honey, soon," Gannon told her.

I had never seen him be so sweet to anybody before, but then again, she w_as_ his daughter. "Well, anyway, I just wanted you to meet her, Chelsea. Come by if you need anything built, like a barn," Gannon told me.

"That probably won't be for a while. I think I'd like to concentrate on building the bridge to the Meadow," I said.

Gannon nodded. "That'd be cool. We could have fireworks and stuff."

"Oh, would there be dances, Chelsea? I love to dance and get all dressed up. I'd probably have to go with Charlie, though . . ." she trailed off in thought.

"Well, I've been to a few places where they have Harvest Goddess festivals," I told her, "People dance at those." I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. I never had believed in the Harvest Goddess.

Eliza clapped her hands together. "Great!" She turned abruptly to her father. "Daddy, can we go back to Chen's now? Charlie's going to show me the beach."

"You saw it when you got here," Gannon objected.

"Yeah, but I didn't really get a good look around, Daddy. Please, please can we go?"

"Yeah, yeah, we'll go." Eliza pulled the door open, and a gust of cold air blew into the building.

"Hurry now, I don't want Nugget getting sick," I told them.

That was the last thing I needed – a sick animal. When they were gone, I turned back to Vaughn, hoping we could begin where we left off. But he smiled slightly at me before repeating that he had work to do and had to get back to the Animal Shop.

"Yes, I guess you have to go," I mumbled, the disappointment leaking into my voice.

As he passed me, though, he reached up one hand, and kissed my cheek. I froze for a few seconds afterward, and I heard him chuckle before he left. I waited until I could no longer hear his heavy boots crunching into the snow before I left myself, glancing at Nugget one more time.

I was in somewhat of a daze. I had planned on chopping lumber today, but it was so cold, and there was no way I could focus anyway. I had decided to walk to my farmhouse for a nap when I saw it.

My eyes had been on the snow as I walked, which was stupid; I should be watching where I walk. But at that particular moment I saw something that made me freeze.

At first I thought I had imagined it.

Then, when I saw it continued, I thought for a second I must be insane.

Because, as I stared at the snow, it looked like, small footprints were appearing in it, heading right toward me. They were definitely footprints, they didn't go in very deep, and they were certainly small, but that's what they were.

I thought about running away, but fear froze me in place. Finally, the footprints from the person who was simply not there stopped, a few feet away. Then, as I stared, I began to see some kind of shape forming.

Maybe it was just the snow falling, and the blustery wind, but after a second, I was sure something was becoming visible right before my eyes. I blinked, and, all of a sudden, there he stood, a very short person.

He came up to my knee, but his eyes were very shiny and bright. He smiled widely at me. I stumbled backward a few feet, and opened my mouth to scream.

The little man realized my intentions and said quickly in a high voice, "No, no, wait, please! Don't be frightened, it's alright. I'm just a Harvest Sprite."

"A . . . a . . . what?" I spluttered.

The little man looked somewhat annoyed now. "Haven't you ever heard of a Harvest Sprite?"

"Yes, I actually have, but they're not real," I said, still incredulous.

"Of course we're real," the man said, "And I'm here to help you."

"Help me?" I asked. "Where were you one month ago?"

He rolled his eyes. "Well, I had to take some time to observe you, of course, to make sure you were a good person. But now that I see you are, I will help you. You're going to restore this island, right?"

"I'm going to restore the ranch," I told him, "And hopefully re-build the broken bridges."

The Harvest Sprite, if that was in fact what he was, nodded. "Yes, yes, same thing. Oh, we're going to be such good friends, Chelsea!"

Something he had said earlier sunk in. "Wait a minute. You said you _observed _me for a month. I don't like being spied on."

The small man shrugged. "Sorry. Part of my job. My name's El. It's nice to meet you."

I nodded to him. "Yes, I guess so."

El laughed in delight. "Hanging around that anti-social cowboy is making you a little cold, isn't it?"

"No," I snapped.

He snickered again, louder this time. "There's a few things you should know," El said suddenly, changing the subject. "No one else besides you can see me. And you can't tell them about me."

I blinked at him. "No one else can _see_ you?" I asked.

"Nope. Nobody sees me unless I want them to. You couldn't see me until I wanted you to," El reminded me.

"You nearly gave me a heart attack," I accused him.

El smirked. "Sorry about that, but it's awfully fun to do. You should have seen your face!"

And then he made an attempt to be serious again. "Anyway, I know a lot about farming. Ask me if you need help."

"I have Taro for that," I snapped, "And Vaughn knows about the animals."

"Not as much as me," El insisted. I didn't want to argue with this little man. For all I knew, I was dreaming this whole episode.

"I'll be appearing from time to time," El told me, "Try not to freak out like you just did."

I scowled at him. He chuckled. "Yep, really need to get away from the cowboy."

"His name is _Vaughn_," I corrected.

"Yeah, yeah. Well, it was awesome meeting you, Chelsea. I know you'll have this island back on its feet in no time. See you soon." And with that, he slowly began to disappear.

"Bye, El," I grumbled.

He disappeared completely, but I heard one more ghostly laugh before it was quiet again. I started walking to the farmhouse again, shaking my head in disbelief at what had just happened.

By the time I reached the house, I had decided to forget about the whole thing. I was very tired, and a nap sounded great, though I felt guilty when I thought about Elliot and his family working with all those heavy crates. I fell asleep eventually, but I was assaulted by odd dreams.

***

_I wasn't really sure where I was._

_It didn't look like I was anywhere, really; there was nothing anywhere but white, no matter where I looked. And then, right in front of me, there was a small poof of light and smoke. I stumbled backwards. _

_Out of the smoke stepped a pretty woman in green clothing. "Hello, Chelsea," she said to me like we knew each other. _

"_Who are you?" I asked._

_She laughed like I had told a good joke. "I am the Harvest Goddess – we haven't met yet, but we will, soon enough, you'll see. I'm coming to you now in a dream, because you can't come to where I live yet."_

"_The Harvest Goddess isn't real," I said dumbly._

_She laughed again. "Just like Harvest Sprites aren't real?" she asked me._

_I sighed, thinking of El. "What do you want?" I mumbled, getting right to the point. _

"_I just want to praise your work so far, Chelsea," said the woman, "You're doing very well. This island has been desolate for far too long, but I know you'll restore it to its former glory."_

"_Everyone says that," I said. _

"_Yes, because it's true. I can't wait to meet you in person, Chelsea," said the Harvest Goddess._

"_Where do you live?" I asked._

_She held up her index finger and wagged it around. "Not important. What is important is your progress. I'm so delighted."_

"_Good for you," I sighed. _

"_I've also been noticing who you've chosen as a future husband," she informed me. _

_I blushed. "What? No, no, I – I haven't made any kind of decision. I have way too much work ahead of me to think about getting married now. And besides…" I trailed off, unsure how to explain._

_She smiled at me gently. "You're probably right, dear. Focus your energy on the task ahead. But in the future . . ." _

"_No," I said. _

_She looked perplexed. "Is that future not pleasing to you?"_

"_Yes. No. I mean, I . . ." It was way too early to think about that. All he's said is that he likes to be around me. He could just as easily say that about his Aunt or his cousin. _

_Then something occurred to me. "Why? Do _you _know the future?"_

"_Again, not important. But let's just say I make plans, and they generally go through," the Harvest Goddess said cryptically. _

"_And what are you planning for _my _future?" I asked._

_If she really did know, and she saw me marrying Vaughn in the future, then did that mean it would definitely happen? The Harvest Goddess looked distressed for a brief second before she smiled again. _

"_Oh, I've already said too much. I only came to praise you, and to encourage you to keep going. Besides, what fun would it be, knowing the future? There'd be no surprises." She laughed once more, and she began to disappear, slowly, like El had. _

"_Wait!" I called to her._

"_I'll see you soon, Chelsea, I promise," said the Harvest Goddess before she disappeared completely. _

_***_

When I woke up, I was . . . irritated, to say the least. These things simply aren't _real. _Taro had said he once worked as a rancher, too, so maybe at one point he also had Harvest Sprites. But El had said I wasn't supposed to talk about him with anyone . . . and as for the dream with the Harvest Goddess, well, I decided to forget that one completely.

If I thought about it, about the meaning behind it if it was real, I would go mad. I put my bandana back on looked at the clock.

It was the middle of the night; I hadn't realized I was so tired. I put the bandana back on my little table and went back to bed. This time I slept without the unpleasantness of realistic dreams.

***

My alarm blared at six in the morning, just as it always did. I groaned and rolled back over in bed, feeling around blindly with one hand to shut it off. Finally, I managed. I was about to go back to sleep when a small movement caught my eye. Instantly aware, I wrenched myself upright and looked to see what it was.

There, lying on the floor next to my small bed, was a soundly sleeping Natalie. I rolled my eyes and fell back on the mattress.

How hadn't I seen her last night? I reasoned that I must have been half-asleep when I woke up, and on top of that I had been preoccupied with confusing thoughts.

Still, when had she come in?

Annoyed, I rolled out of the bed and onto my feet. I walked over to my sink and filled a glass with ice-cold water. I walked back over to Nat and, without pausing, dumped the whole thing onto her head.

"Ack!" was the first thing to come out of her mouth.

I snickered when I realized her whole head was drenched. I realized it must have been a little cruel to allow the water to have been that icy; it was cold enough as it was in here. She wrenched herself up faster than I would have thought possible, and her expression was so confused it was almost comical.

"Good morning, Nat," I said cheerfully, walking back to the kitchen area to place the glass in the sink.

Her hands went to her wet hair. "What did you _do?_" she snapped at me.

"I woke you up," I said wickedly, "in the rudest way possible. That's what you get for sneaking into people's houses uninvited."

A vengeful look came into her eyes and then I realized that dumping icy water on a friend who had a bad temper wasn't such a hot idea. She got to her feet and raised one hand, pointing at me accusingly with her index finger. "You're going to regret that, Chelsea."

"I'm so scared," I replied haughtily.

She didn't make any sudden movements. She didn't run over to me and attempt to rip my hair out. She didn't do anything but glare. This was surprising, but I figured she would get me back for this later.

Then, my alarm blared again, making us both jump. Apparently, I had only hit the snooze button. "Argh!" I shouted, smashing down much harder than necessary on the off switch. I turned back to Nat.

"Seriously, Natalie, what are you doing sneaking into my house?"

"_Sorry, _I didn't think it would be a big _deal,_" she said in a voice that was clearly designed to make me feel guilty.

She stomped into my bathroom to retrieve a towel. When she came back, it was wrapped around her head like a turban. I giggled.

"Oh shut up," she snapped, "You're lucky I haven't dumped your head in the toilet after what you just did."

I snickered again.

She went to sit on my bed. "If you must know, Julia came over late last night after we got done with work – it was at, like nine thirty."

I shrugged indifferently. "So?" I asked.

"They stayed in the kitchen talking long after me, Gramps and Mom went to bed. I finally left at, like, eleven," she sighed.

"You don't handle jealousy well, do you?" I asked tentatively.

She responded by hurling the pillow at me, which I dodged. "Maybe I am jealous. So what? It's not like anyone _cares._"

"Aw, come on, Nat," I said, poking around my pint-sized refrigerator. I didn't have much at all. "Looks like I'm begging for food again," I muttered, almost slamming the door shut. Then I continued my earlier comment to Natalie. "More and more people are going to move here, and then you'll find a guy."

She rolled her eyes and pulled the towel off her head. "Easy for you to say. You already have one."

I blushed and pretended to examine a window. She noticed. "By the way, how _are_ things going with your cowboy? We all know how fond I am of him, after yesterday's little episode."

"Things are fine," I mumbled, "And he was just mad yesterday because I got sick."

Natalie fell back on the bed. "I don't get it," she said, more to herself than me, "The first time he met you, he told you to go away because you annoyed him. And now all of sudden he's in love with you? That guy's got issues."

I wished she had a boyfriend I could easily poke fun of. "Things change, Nat," I said to her mysteriously.

I could tell she wanted to ask what I meant, but Nat knew when I wanted to stop talking. She knows me too well. "Anyway," she said, changing the subject, "They're starting construction today on a place called the Original Inn. It's great that we're getting a hotel, but no one will come if there's nothing to _do._"

"There will be plenty," I told her, "Denny came here because there's supposed to be undiscovered fish, right? Other fishermen are bound to want to come here. And besides, who knows what's beyond those broken bridges? There could be a ton of cool things. When we first got here, I could have sworn I saw a pink roof!"

"Yeah, I remember that," she recalled, "Gramps said that was a bunch of crap."

"Maybe it's not," I said defensively.

"Who would live over there? No one else lives there. Even if there _is_ a house, it's probably abandoned," Natalie argued.

"Whatever. We'll see after Gannon builds the bridge."

"We're _also _getting a Diner soon," she told me, "And possibly a café. In East Town."

"That will help with the tourist thing," I said.

She nodded and went into my bathroom to look for a brush and hang up the towel. "By the way," she called, and I heard her banging around in the medicine cabinet.

"Top drawer, Nat," I said.

"Right. Anyway, did you meet Gannon's kid yesterday? I think she's kind of a brat."

"Yeah," I mumbled, thinking of how her appearance had ruined my Vaughn-kissing. "She's just vain, Natalie. Other than that she's alright."

I heard her snort and pull the drawer open. "You should see how she acts around Charlie. Poor boy gets bossed around constantly."

I didn't answer; I was looking for my hammer. I wanted to have enough material stone to make a fence for Nugget and possibly other chickens by the time spring came. But while I was searching through my rucksack, I saw movement in my peripheral vision.

Natalie was still in the bathroom, so it couldn't have been her. I yanked the ax out of the rucksack and stood, ready to ward off whatever it was. And just like yesterday, a shape appeared out of seemingly nowhere, and all of a sudden El was standing there, looking exactly as he had yesterday, except this time his hands were raised defensively.

"Put the ax down, Chelsea," he said in a very slow voice, like I was mentally handicapped.

I scowled at him and put the ax back in my pack. "What are you doing here?" I hissed at him.

I was probably being rude, but he really didn't have the right to show up whenever he dang well pleased. He shrugged. "Just bored. What are you up to today?"

I really didn't want to tell him. But I did. "Making material stone. After I eat. After I go see Vaughn."

He rolled his eyes. "Shouldn't you be concentrating more on _work _now?" he criticized.

"Butt out," I snapped at him.

El sighed. "Whatever. Doesn't matter anyway." He paused for a minute, probably listening to Natalie humming as she brushed through her hair. "Oh!" El snapped his tiny fingers. "I actually did have a reason for coming to see you this morning."

"Well, get to the point," I said. I wanted to get on with my day. The longer I talked to El was precious time I wasted on a day Vaughn was actually on the island.

"You're a most ungracious farmer," El complained, but he continued anyway, "I think you might have misunderstood me yesterday. Not only do I _know _a ton about ranching, animals and crops, I will also help you with your chores." He wrinkled his tiny nose. "Not that there's much to do right now."

I looked at him doubtfully. "I don't think there's a whole lot you could do. You're very small."

He winced. "Yes, well, I'm not the _only _Harvest Sprite on this island. How sad would that be? Maybe, if you're a little nicer to me, I'll ask some of my friends to help too. This island will be revitalized in no time!"

"Fine," I told him. I pulled on my jacket and the rucksack. Vaughn was probably still at the Animal Shop – hopefully not working. The hammer could wait. Just then, Natalie stepped out of the bathroom, her hair still wet, but much better groomed. Her teeth were chattering.

"Who were you talking to, Chelsea?" she asked, a little suspiciously.

I looked at El questioningly. He snickered. "I told you only the people I wanted to see me could. You're the only one who can."

"What are you looking at?" Natalie probed.

I looked at her again. "Nothing, Nat."

"Hopefully you're not losing your head. Hanging around gloomy cowboys will do that to you, though, I suppose."

"Are you quite done with those jokes?" I groaned.

She laughed. "Not even close. Anyway, thanks to your little stunt, I'm freezing here. Think about getting a heater."

"Because I have _so _much money," I said sarcastically.

She looked repentant. "Err, sorry." Natalie wasn't often embarrassed, but it was one of those times. I shrugged and looked away. "It's okay."

The silence that followed was awkward. She broke it first, and I was grateful. "I really ought to get back, though, Chelsea. I've still got work to do. But you're probably not going to help, are you?" I

smiled. "It's Thursday."

"Yes," she sighed, "Thursday."

El frowned disapprovingly. I ignored him. Natalie gave me a hug before she left – she also reminded me she was going to get back at me for my water stunt.

Once she was gone, I told El I was leaving. "But I thought you were going to make material stone," he whined.

"After I see Vaughn, and eat breakfast. And feed Nugget," I suddenly remembered.

El followed me to the coop. I picked up the chick and held her to my chest lovingly, cooing to her for a few minutes. She chirped happily. "See?" asked El kindly. "You're already a natural.

I laughed softly. "You should see Vaughn with animals. He's much better at it than I am."

El rolled his eyes again and muttered something unintelligible.

"If you can't stay out of my social life, we're not going to get along," I snapped.

El laughed. "I can't agree to that. I'll try to stay out of the romantic one, though."

"Thank you," I sighed in relief. I placed a piece of bird feed in the feeder. I had ten pieces left. I needed to go and buy some more from Mirabelle.

Without another word to the little Harvest Sprite, I turned and hurried off my land.

**El POV**

I watched Chelsea leave the ranch worriedly. I couldn't wait for this new rancher to revitalize the island. It had been vacant for far too long, and it had made me so unhappy to see it deserted for all these years.

But that was all going to change now. At first I had been giddy with this happiness, especially after I found out Chelsea was a good person, after the month of observation. True, our initial meeting and relationship was a little rocky, but I was certain that could be remedied with time.

It annoyed me that she wasn't fully concentrating on building up the island. No, half her attention, if not more, was directed at the island's animal dealer now. I didn't like it.

Not at all.


	11. Bliss

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harvest Moon. If I did, I wouldn't write fanfiction about it. **

_10: Bliss_

Natalie had been right about the Inn.

Not just Gannon but a whole mess of workers were running around constructing the building. Gannon appeared to be in charge of them all, however.

"No, Avery, don't put that there" he said once in a while, or "Move that over, Rick".

Taro was also there, standing beside Gannon, looking unbelievably short. He didn't say anything, though, just watched.

"Taro!" I called over to him.

He looked over at me. "Morning, little missy," he greeted.

Gannon didn't even look up; he stomped over to one of the workers with an angry expression. I felt sorry for the worker.

"Morning," I called back, "Any idea what the weather might be like tomorrow?"

He paused a second, and then answered, "The breeze is telling me it'll snow."

"Thanks!" I said. That was unfortunate; if for some reason I didn't get to the material stone today, I didn't want to chop in falling snow.

I caught sight of Denny when I was about halfway to the Animal Shop; he was just coming out of Chen's shop, holding some kind of box. He smiled broadly at me and hurried over to where I was.

"Hey, Denny," I greeted him.

"Hey, Chelsea," he replied.

"What did you get?" I wondered.

He held up the box proudly. "Fishing gear. I make my living from fishing, you know, so I have to have all the right stuff." He glanced back at Chen's, his expression suddenly irritated. Before he could voice whatever he was thinking, Poppy squawked at me again. I made a face at the black bird. Denny smiled, amused. "He doesn't care for you much. Anyway, even though I got this awesome new stuff, it was pretty hard to concentrate in there – Eliza and Charlie were making such a racket."

I laughed. "They really like each other, don't they?"

Denny shrugged. "Eliza likes him. But she also likes to boss him around. Charlie doesn't seem to mind."

"I'll bet he doesn't. Eliza's very pretty," I said.

Denny shrugged and changed the subject. "You checked your calendar lately? Winter Harmony Day's coming up – you know, the day girls give boys chocolate to show their appreciation?"

I laughed again. "You trying to imply something, Denny?"

"No, not at all. I'm just saying I'm a pretty awesome friend, if I so say so myself, and right now I happen to be chocolate-less."

I rolled my eyes. "I'm sure the girls will be all over you, Denny."

"Every girl except _one_," he said suggestively, "I have a feeling she'll be all over someone else."

I blushed. "He won't even be here. Winter Harmony Day is on Friday." I sighed unhappily.

Denny shrugged again. "There's always next Wednesday."

"Yes," I said.

He suddenly looked uncomfortable. "What is it?" I asked.

His eyes flickered to the left, and then the right, as if he was afraid someone was listening. "Well, it's just that…err…" He sighed.

"_What?_" I asked again.

"Well, you know the new girl that just came to the island? Lanna? Well, I really like her, but I don't know if she likes me. I guess I'll find out on Winter Harmony Day."

I wrinkled my nose. "Really, Denny? _Lanna?_ You could do so much better."

"Lanna!" Poppy repeated.

Denny rolled his eyes. "I could say the same thing about you."

I was annoyed now. "No, I couldn't. He's the best," I said defensively.

Denny held up his hands. "Okay, okay. Jeez. Touchy. Anyway, I just hope . . ."

"I don't like her very much," I said, "But when I see her again, I'll ask her what she thinks of you."

He blinked. "How can you not like her? She's, like, awesome."

It wasn't that I didn't like her. I had just gotten a horrible first impression of her, what with her calling Julia's cousin sexy. But then again, she _had_ given me a pretty nice coat . . . "Yeah, I guess you're right. I'll be nicer."

"Cool," Denny said. "See you, Chelsea, I've got to get back."

I nodded, but as I turned, I heard Poppy squawk, "Chelsea!" I sighed and wondered if Denny would mind if I killed his bird in its sleep. Probably. I had banished all bird killing thoughts from my mind by the time I reached the Animal Shop.

When I opened the door and walked in, I immediately wished I hadn't. Julia and Elliot were all snuggled up together on the couch, and she was kissing his neck.

Mirabelle was nowhere in sight.

When Elliot saw me, he blushed a very dark red and pushed Julia back. Julia giggled when she saw me. "Sorry, Chelsea. My mom will be back soon – she's delayed opening the Shop until noon. She hasn't had the chance to hang out with Felicia in a while."

"Okay, okay," I said, taking a step back, very grossed out. Elliot fidgeted with his odd green apron.

"Where's Vaughn?" I asked. Normally I wouldn't have been so blunt, but I was eager to get out of there.

"Back in his room. I don't know what he's doing." I hesitated, unsure if I should bother.

Julia noticed. "Oh, go on. He needs the company."

I still hesitated, but I wanted to see him, and I was also procrastinating with my material stone cutting. I wished I had asked El to start the chore for me before I left. I almost laughed out loud, trying to imagine his tiny body smashing my heavy hammer down on stones.

I walked into the hallway, and heard Julia giggle behind me, which made me walk faster. The only other time I had been back here was when I had been looking for Vaughn right before Felicia's stew.

There were two doors I knew weren't his – Mirabelle's bedroom and Julia's bedroom. There were quite a few other doors, though – one led to a bathroom, one led to Vaughn, and the last probably led to where the animals were kept.

Vaguely, I could make out a few animal noises behind one door, so I ruled that one out. The other door was thankfully open, so I could easily see it was a bathroom. The very last room has to be Vaughn's.

I stood outside the door and my heart suddenly ran a lot faster than it had been before. I heard Julia squeal in delight out in the main room, so I hurriedly knocked on the door.

After a few minutes, I heard his voice call, "Who is it?"

He sounded irritated. I was about to say 'it's me' but that was probably too weird. "Chelsea," I answered. I waited another moment, and then the door opened.

He wasn't wearing the heavy boots, the fingerless gloves, the tan vest, or the white bandana around his neck. Just a black button down shirt, black jeans and his hat. I wondered if he ever took it off. He didn't start talking; it looked like he was waiting for me to start speaking.

Thankfully, he didn't look annoyed like his voice had suggested – his expression was almost curious. It also looked like he was trying not to smile. I made no such attempt. My grin was huge. "Good morning, Vaughn," I said, unable to hide my cheer.

"Morning." His words were curt, but there was amusement in his amethyst eyes.

I realized it would probably have been stupid of me to him to come here without a reason, so I quickly came up with one. "I just came by to say thanks for yesterday, what with all the info." I wanted to say more, but unfortunately I had no spine.

He nodded.

I wanted to say something like 'I'll miss you when you leave today' or 'it sucks because you're only here for two days', but I couldn't. I had no idea how he felt. It wouldn't be so hard to figure out, though, if he wasn't like a brick wall most of the time.

I summoned my courage. "I know you're leaving today, and I know you have to work, but maybe we could hang out next Wednesday?" I suggested.

He looked surprised for a second, but then he shrugged. "And do what?" He wasn't trying to be mean, I could tell, just curious again.

"I don't know. I can't cook, not at all, but I could attempt to make dinner for you at my place."

"I'd like that," he said. I was taken aback by his willingness. I hadn't really expected him to say yes. "Great. You hate carrots, though, right?" I asked.

He shuddered. "Yeah."

"Why?" I asked curiously.

"They're disgusting," he answered simply.

I laughed. "You like milk?" I asked for reason in particular.

He smiled. It looked so nice. "Yeah."

I nodded. "Great. My place, six o' clock?"

He nodded. "Sounds good." I heard the door of the shop open, and Mirabelle calling his name.

"C'mon," he said to me, and he took my hand and pulled me with him out to the main room. Very surprisingly, he didn't release it even when we stood in front of his Aunt. I found breathing properly to be difficult, and the odd electricity was back.

I sighed happily.

Elliot was nowhere in sight; I guessed he had gone home, but I could see Julia moving around in the kitchen, humming merrily to herself.

Mirabelle eyed our hands, but she didn't comment on it. "Did you get around to feeding the animals yet?" she asked him, "The horse needs to be brushed, too."

He shook his head. "Not yet," he said, "I just got done with some paperwork. But I'll go do that now."

"Chelsea could help you, Vaughn, if she's not busy," Julia said, appearing in the main room with a huge smile. She looked at our hands too, and she looked so happy she almost glowed.

"I can do it myself," Vaughn muttered to her.

I was instantly disappointed, and a little hurt. But then he glanced at me, as if remembering something, and when he spoke again, his tone was remorseful. "But you can help me, if you want to."

"I do," I said honestly.

"Great."Julia clapped her hands together and went over to get her coat. "I'm going over to Elliot's, Mom," she said, "They're still working, and I want to help."

I shuddered, remembering what I had walked in on a minute ago.

"Be back for dinner, dear," Mirabelle said.

Vaughn informed her he wouldn't be around for dinner next Wednesday, and then he started walking to the hallway, still not letting go of my hand. Mirabelle gave me a questioning look before we were out of sight, but she also looked happy, so I think I could safely assume she approved.

I was right about which door the animals were kept behind. There were six chickens and one horse being kept there. It might have been just my imagination making me see what I wanted to, but it seemed like Vaughn was a little reluctant to let go of my hand.

He had to go over to the feeder though, and get pieces of bird food. I helped him distribute it to all six feeders, and we worked in silence. It wasn't uncomfortable – he probably preferred it that way, and I really didn't mind.

When it was time to brush the horse, though, he asked me if I had ever brushed a horse before. "No," I admitted. "I rode one once, but that was back when I was, like, eight."

He snorted, but he showed me the different kinds of brushes, some of them hard-bristled and big, others very soft and small. The horse was a big beautiful brown mare, and she was calm and mellow while Vaughn brushed down the right side of her body. The dust and dirt fell off as I watched.

He looked almost peaceful as he worked, and I supposed this was his happy place.

"You really like your job, don't you?" I asked.

He gave me a small smile. "Yes, I do. Animals . . . they don't judge like people do."

"Judge?" I asked, surprised by his answer.

"Yes." He shrugged.

"I don't judge people," I said.

"Yes, you do. Everyone does," he said matter-of-factly.

"So why does it bother you?" I asked.

He sighed, and I wondered if I was probing too much. "I don't know how to explain it. I'm just more comfortable with the animals, I guess. People are always getting ideas in their head about me, and most of them are very untrue." I

could see what he meant. But could he really blame them? "You're not the easiest person to talk to, you know," I said.

"You don't seem to have trouble with it," he replied.

I laughed. "Trust me, I do."

He was suddenly repentant again. "I don't mean to make you uncomfortable."

"I know you don't," I sighed, "it's just your personality. Some people dislike you because you're standoffish. I'm the exception, not the rule."

He handed me the brush and instructed I do the left side of the horse. I started to do as he asked, but I was nervous, never having done this before. I gently started to brush down the horse. She eyed me nervously, raising and bringing down her left front hoof like she was stomping.

"Why aren't there any clouds of dust coming out?" I asked, frustrated. If I ever wanted to raise livestock myself, I would have to know how to do all this, and so far I wasn't doing so well.

"You're not brushing hard enough," he told me.

"Why is she so nervous? She was fine when you were doing this," I said, an unintentional note of petulance in my voice.

"It's because you're nervous. She can sense that, and if you're nervous, she's nervous. Try to relax." He walked over to stand next to me. I sighed and started brushing again, using more pressure this time. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him staring, and this was not helping me calm myself. In fact, I was only getting more nervous.

The horse stepped forward and then back, whinnying unhappily. Vaughn smirked, and took the brush from me. The horse calmed down. It crossed my mind that maybe I should give him something for Winter Harmony Day before he left for the week, if I could get around to Chen's Shop in time.

"There," Vaughn said. The horse went back into her stall, and we headed back into hall, and then down to the living area where Mirabelle stood behind the counter. She smiled at both of us. "Get everything done?" she asked.

"Yup," I told her.

"Great. Need anything while you're here?"

I decided to purchase a few bags of chicken feed while I was there. Gannon had built two feeders, so I ordered another chicken as well impulsively.

"You want another one already?" Mirabelle asked in surprise.

I nodded. "Yes, I think I do."

"Well, if you want another chick, I can have Vaughn bring it next week. If you want an adult, you can go back and pick one out," Mirabelle informed me.

I thought it was best to get a chick, so it would already know me when it grew up and I wouldn't get crap-quality eggs. "I'll wait for the chick," I said.

Mirabelle nodded. I tuned to Vaughn. "Can you bring it over to my place next Wednesday?"

He nodded. "You gonna build a fence to keep them in for when they grow up? They'll be happier that way."

"Yes. I'm starting it as soon as possible. I'm using material stone because Gannon told me it would last longer." Speaking of Gannon, I needed to get over to his house and request that he build a bridge to the Meadow. I finally had enough money, and with a hotel and a place to hold festivals, this island would be more prosperous. And Nat said we were getting a Diner and Café soon . . . "I need to get over to Gannon's. I'm paying him to build the bridge to the Meadow."

Mirabelle clapped her hands together. "Wonderful! Felicia can hold crop contests there at the end of every season – excluding winter, of course. There are also Fireworks Festivals, and Snow Days, and Animal Shows . . ." she trailed off, and she broke into a wide grin. "Speaking of Festivals, did you know the Starry Night Festival is coming soon? Next week, I believe. We don't need a Meadow for that one; everything just gazes at the sky and we eat a big meal. Chelsea, why don't you come back next week and celebrate with us?"

My question came out before I really thought about it. "What day is it on?" I blushed, realizing I had spoken aloud.

Mirabelle gave me a knowing smile. "Sunday," she said. I glanced sideways and saw Vaughn fidgeting nervously.

"Why does it matter, Chelsea?"

I had been staring, so I hadn't noticed the door opening. Julia stood there, her cheeks a rosy pink color and her blue eyes sparkling with mischief.

I gave her a dirty look, but decided to tell the truth. "I thought it would be nice if Vaughn was there; then we could all celebrate together," I answered promptly.

"You don't have to do that," Vaughn muttered, but his tone was not as annoyed as I had thought it would be. His voice was almost soft, as if the whole thing really _did _matter. I turned to him and ignored my hammering heart.

Julia walked into the kitchen, smirking. I heard Mirabelle call and ask why she was back so early, but I didn't hear Julia's reply; I wasn't listening. "I'd really like it if you were there," I said. My voice was supposed to be clear and confident, but it came out as an unsure whisper.

He nodded, and smiled slightly. "We could always celebrate a few days late," Mirabelle interrupted in a sweet voice, "There's nothing different about the Starry Night Festival than any other night."

I waited for Vaughn to object again, but he didn't. "That'll be fine," Julia said, walking back into the room with a jar of something green in her hands. "Can I take this, Mom? Felicia wants you to come over for dinner tonight, by the way."

Mirabelle smiled. "I have to run the shop, dear, but tell her thank you."

I ignored their pleasantries. "I have to go to Gannon's now," I said, "Bye."

"Mirabelle," Vaughn said suddenly.

She looked up with interest. "Yes, dear?"

"Is there anything else you want done?"

She blinked and seemed to think for a minute. "No, I don't think so. I'll need you again tonight, but nothing at the moment."

He nodded and walked over to the door. He held it open and stood there. I blinked; it took several minutes before I realized he was holding it for me. I walked outside and waved goodbye to Mirabelle and her daughter.

Vaughn closed the door behind us, and we began walking south to Gannon's house. He didn't say anything on the way, but I was content with the silence; my heart was in my throat, so I wouldn't have been able to talk well anyway.

When we got there, I saw Eliza and Charlie standing by the counter. "Eliza," I heard Charlie say timidly, "Are you my girlfriend?"

Gannon was nowhere to be seen. Neither of them seemed to have noticed our arrival. Eliza laughed as if the very idea was ludicrous. "Of course not, Charlie!" she cried.

"But why?" Charlie asked, clearly bewildered.

"You need to grow up – I'm attracted to more mature boys," she informed him.

"Humph," Charlie grumbled.

Eliza suddenly grew a little sympathetic. "Tell you what, Charlie," she said sweetly to him, "I have a wish. If you can make my wish come true, I'll be your girlfriend."

Charlie beamed at her, and spoke in an eager and hopeful voice. "Anything, anything."

"My wish," Eliza paused to increase suspense, "Is to become a princess! Will you do that for me?"

Charlie blinked. "Naw, I can't do that. I'm not magic, Eliza!" he complained.

Eliza was suddenly annoyed. "You shouldn't promise anything, Charlie, when you're not being truthful." She turned and crossed her arms over her chest, scowling.

Charlie was about to protest when Gannon came lumbering out from the backside of his house to stand behind the counter. "What's wrong, Eliza?" he asked, concerned.

"I told Charlie I would be his girlfriend if he would make me a princess, and he promised he would, but just now he says he can't! Isn't that awful, Daddy?" Eliza grumbled.

Gannon blinked at Chen's son. "You want to date my daughter?" he asked, beginning to smile.

"Yeah, yeah, I do, Gannon!" Charlie said eagerly.

"The day you beat me in a fight is the day that'll happen," Gannon told him, smug.

Charlie frowned. "But I can't do that – you're five thousand times my size!"

Gannon's smirk became more pronounced. "Exactly."

Charlie scowled and stormed out of the house. Eliza shrugged and went back to her room. Vaughn snorted quietly at the exchange. Gannon looked up at the two of us for the first time, trying to conceal his surprise at seeing us together.

"Hey there, Chelsea. Hey, Vaughn," Gannon said gruffly.

I smiled at him and walked up to the counter; Vaughn lingered behind me. "I'd like you to build the bridge to the Meadow, please," I said, handing him the money.

Gannon smiled widely; it wasn't pretty. "Cool," he said, taking it. "It'll be done by tomorrow."

"That's awfully quick," I said in surprise.

Gannon shrugged his massive shoulders. "Yeah, well, I want it done quick."

I shrugged. "Okay. See you later, and tell Eliza I said hello." I wanted to be polite, but the spoiled little girl really annoyed me.

I waved goodbye and Vaughn followed me out. I could see the workers still building the Inn in the distance.

"Heard they're supposed to start on the Diner and Café soon," Vaughn mused, his voice quiet, almost distant, as if he was deep in thought.

"Yeah, that'll be nice. We'll have tourists," I said brightly.

I needed to go home and begin making material stone, but I didn't want him to go. So I just started walking, hoping he would follow. He did.

The silence this time was less comfortable, because it looked like he was thinking about something deeply. When I approached my farmhouse, I saw with much surprise that there was already twenty pieces of material stone stacked in neat piles next to the house. Instantly, El appeared.

"Hey, Chelsea," he said brightly.

His face fell when he saw who I stood next to. "Oh," he grumbled, "I'll leave you alone."

"Wait," I said, raising a hand. Vaughn raised one silver brow. "Who are you talking to?" he asked, his expression questioning.

"Nobody," I said quickly.

I wanted to thank El for his hard work, but I also didn't want Vaughn thinking I was mentally handicapped. El raised one hand and waved it in the air dismissively, and when I blinked he was gone again.

"Thought you hadn't done this yet," Vaughn commented, gesturing to the stone.

I cleared my throat. "Yeah, well, I don't have enough yet."

"Hmm," he murmured.

A few seconds passed before he asked in a humorous tone, "So how's _Nugget_ doing?" He was clearly taunting my chicken's name, and he pulled the black hat down to hide his smile.

Without thinking, I reached up and snatched it right off his head. "She's fabulous, thanks for asking," I replied haughtily.

He reached for his hat, but he didn't look annoyed; if anything he was amused. I had never seen him without the hat before; his silver hair was almost shiny in the sun. He was gorgeous. I looked away before he caught me ogling.

I had to jump out of the way so he didn't get the hat.

"Give it," he said, stepping forward again.

I agilely dodged him. "I hate this hat," I complained, "It hides your face."

"_I _like it," he said, moving quicker now.

He lunged forward and very nearly had me, but I skipped backwards at the last moment. The movement made me nearly lose my balance, so for one second I was distracted and vulnerable. He tried to grab the hat out of my hands again, but the heavy boots he wore clearly weren't made for swift movements.

He stumbled over them and fell forwards, so we both fell backwards onto the snow, just in front of the iced-over field. He landed on top of me, using his hands to catch himself. The hat was crushed in between us.

I expected that he would be irritated now, but surprisingly he chuckled and smiled down at me. It took a second for my mind to catch up to the position we were in, and when I realized it, I blushed and my heart went faster than it ever had. I assumed he would jump up immediately and grab his hat, but he didn't.

He was acting very out-of-character today. The seconds passed, and I could think of absolutely nothing, except that he was touching me. After another short moment, his smile fell away and he was suddenly looking down at me with resolve in his eyes, like an important decision had just been made.

His intentions became clear just a moment before his actions, so my mind had no way to catch up before it happened.

The kiss was a thousand times better than my fantasies. There was absolutely no way to describe it, other than total bliss. His lips were not gentle and loving as I had imagined, though; instead they were rather rough, but I found this to be just as good, if not better.

Both my hands were sort of stuck in between our bodies, but I managed to wedge one free and run it through his hair. A low moan escaped his lips, and my whole body shuddered in delight. After several minutes, though, he pulled back, and started to get to his feet.

He helped me up, too, and his arms wrapped around my waist. "I've wanted to do that," he informed me, "for a while."

I shivered in delight once more. I reached up and put the hat on his head, sad to see it there. My mind was in a thousand places at once, so there was no way I could think of anything coherent to say.

He seemed to sense that. "I should get back," he murmured, "There _are_ a few things to do."

I nodded and reached up to stroke his face, wondering if he minded. He didn't move away from my hand or wince or anything, so I assumed it was okay. "When do you leave tonight?" I managed to say.

"Around ten thirty," he answered.

"I'll come and say goodbye then," I offered.

"You don't have to," he said automatically. But then his expression softened and he added, "I'd like to see you, though."

I nodded. "Okay."

He smiled and let go of me. I watched him walk away until he wasn't visible anymore. It began to snow, and the wind blew by icily.

But I hardly noticed. I walked back to my farmhouse in a daze, only beginning to comprehend what had just happened. I went into the house, sat down in a chair, and smiled.


	12. Warning

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harvest Moon: Island of Happiness. **

_11: A warning _

Natalie came over that night. I told her that soon I would have to start charging her rent.

She made a face and me and made a little bed for herself on my newly-purchased couch. "Yeah, yeah," she grumbled. She lay down and I got into bed.

Butterflies were still dancing in my stomach from earlier today. I was disappointed Nat had come over; I would have to sneak out. I wasn't sure why, but I didn't want to tell her about what had happened earlier today. If I did, she would make a big deal out of it and blab to every soul on the Island.

As much as I wanted the rest of the Island to know Vaughn and I were together, I wasn't actually sure if we _were._ It wasn't like we had made declarations of undying love or anything like that.

I snorted and smirked at the idea. It didn't seem like Vaughn would do that kind of thing, but I was only just beginning to see a different side of him that the usual. When I had first met him and shortly afterwards, most of my intrigue with him was wanting to know who he was behind the mask.

After that, I had thought that maybe I would move on, no longer so curious. But I saw now that it wasn't like that at all. Getting to know him would only make me want to be with him more and more . . .

"Earth to Chelsea!" Natalie half-yelled, chucking her pillow at me.

I threw it back at her and snapped in annoyance, "What?"

"I've been _talking_ to you for the past few minutes, but you've been totally ignoring me," she grumbled.

"Sorry, Nat, I'm thinking," I said honestly.

"About . . . ?" She looked expectant.

"About the new buildings," I lied, looking away, leaning back on my pillow and looking at the clock. It was 9:27 now. I figured I would leave around 10:15, giving myself fifteen minutes to get to the beach. I might have left earlier, but there was a certain nosy friend of mine sitting on my sofa.

"You suck at lying," Natalie told me bluntly. She suddenly looked eager. "Julia told me that you and your cowboy left the Animal Shop together, and went down to Gannon's."

"Yeah, I paid him to build the bridge to the Meadow, so we can have festivals and stuff. Won't that be awesome?" I asked, trying to distract her.

It didn't work.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. So what happened?" she probed.

"Nothing. He walked me to Gannon's, and then he went back to the Shop."

Natalie's eyes narrowed. "My brother was waiting for Julia outside his house. He said he saw you go by with him up to your farm, you lying dweeb," she said, irritated.

I blushed, embarrassed at being caught in a lie. I cursed Elliot with every foul word I knew. "Alright, we went back to my land together. But nothing happened," I fibbed.

She sighed, exasperated. "If nothing happened, you wouldn't have tried to lie about it."

I groaned and covered half my face with the pillow. I saw no way out of this. I had to come clean. So I sat back up and told her everything that happened, unhappy when she asked for details.

"Was he a good kisser?" she asked, clutching her own pillow, her expression eager.

I blushed again. "_I _think so," I mumbled.

Natalie laughed.

"Why do you want to know all of this?" I grumbled

She sighed, suddenly sad. "My love life sucks. There's no guys around here."

"Sure there are," I said.

"Like?"

"Well, um . . ." I wracked my brain. "There's your brother" – she looked at me like I was insane.

I scowled at her. "I'm just listing guys, Nat, you gross-o." She winced and I continued. "There's Denny and . . . uh . . ." I came up blank.

"Denny's into Lanna. I don't know if she likes him, but . . ."

"Sorry, Natalie," I said sympathetically, "I'm sure more people will move here eventually."

"They'd _better,_" she almost snapped.

I snickered. "So are you guys like, _together_ now?" she asked abruptly.

I tried very hard to hide the hope and longing from my voice. "I don't know, and I'm not going to ask."

"Why?" she asked.

"I don't know, Nat. I don't know how to phrase it, and saying, 'Hey, Vaughn, are you my boyfriend?' seems kind of immature, don't you think?"

She seemed thoughtful for a brief moment. "Yeah, I guess you're right. Maybe you could ask, but, you know, more tactfully? Wait for the right moment."

I snorted. "_You_ wouldn't be tactful. _You_ would come right out and ask."

She shrugged. "Yeah, but that's me. We're different."

I snorted. "That's for dang sure."

"Well, I'm totally superior, of course," she said haughtily.

I rolled my eyes stared up at the ceiling. "I really like him, Natalie," I whispered.

"I know. I hope everything works out for you. He still seems horrible to me."

"He seemed horrible to me, too. But he's different around me now. He's . . . _nice._"

"I know. And I'm sure you'll fall in love and have a happily ever after with diamonds and ponies while _I _turn into an old maid and collect birds habitually."

I snickered and then was quiet. I wanted her to fall asleep before 10:15 so I could sneak out. I knew Natalie fell asleep fairly quickly, like everyone else in her family. The minutes passed agonizingly slow, and when I looked up at the clock again it read 9:45.

Not too long to go now.

Natalie's breathing deepened. I squinted in the very limited moonlight and saw that her eyes were closed and one of her arms hung over the side of the couch.

I got up and grabbed the flashlight I had hid under the bed when she arrived. I had to get in my pajamas when she got here, so she didn't get suspicious, and I knew it would be cold outside, even with the jacket.

I grabbed the very thick one I had gotten from Lanna and felt a rush of thankfulness. I would have to express my gratitude again to her when I got the chance.

I slid the coat on. It came down to the back of my thighs. Very, very quietly, I opened the door and snuck out, sure to leave it unlocked behind me. It was still snowing, but very lightly now, and the moon was very nearly full, giving me a nice glow that helped me see.

The flashlight was even more useful, of course. I hurried through the Main part of town, praying that nobody was still up and saw me. I wondered what they would think, seeing me heading south with a flashlight in hand at this hour.

I smiled as I began imagining. I snapped back to reality, though, when I stepped onto the soft sand of the beach and saw the boat approaching the Island in the distance. A lone figure stood on the dock, and I smiled at him as I approached.

He turned and smiled when he saw. "Hey," I murmured.

"Hey," he grunted. His tone would have seemed cold if he wasn't reaching for the hand that wasn't clutching the flashlight.

There were a lot of gooey romantic things I wanted to say, but I thought they would only embarrass me. I settled for "I'll miss you."

He started to pull the hat down over his face again, but I grimaced, and he stopped, smirking. "It's only a week," he said. He looked out to the sea. "But I'll…miss you too," he mumbled after a minute.

The statement seemed to embarrass him. I could see his cheeks flush even in the limited light. "Are we still on for Wednesday?" I checked.

"Yeah," he answered.

I reached into the breast pocket of my pajama shirt and brought out the bar of chocolate I suddenly remembered. "For Winter Thanksgiving," I murmured, handing it to him.

He took it eagerly. "You sure I can have it?" he asked uncertainly.

I snickered. "Yes, Vaughn, I'm sure."

The boat was much closer to the dock than I wanted it to be; I glowered. It wasn't long before he had to board. "Bye," I said.

He didn't answer; he merely leaned down and kissed me softly, much gentler than he had been before. The kiss was brief and very, very sweet. Then he turned and got on the boat. I hoped he would stay on the deck and wave, but that seemed a kind of sappy, and it was late, so it didn't really surprise me when he didn't.

I sighed dreamily and stared after the boat as it sailed away. I turned and started walking back. But just as I walked past Denny's house, I caught a sign of movement in my peripheral vision.

I whirled in alarm, holding the flashlight up as if it was a weapon. The figure snickered at the sight. Denny stepped out of the shadows and walked up to me, a fishing pole in his hands.

"W – What are you doing here?" I snapped, irritated at him for frightening me.

"I was going to go fishing," Denny answered promptly.

"At this hour?" I asked skeptically.

He shrugged. "I fish at all ungodly hours, thank you very much."

Poppy was perched up on his right shoulder, much to my disappointment. "Fishing," he squawked. I made a face at the bird.

"Well, uh, see you, Denny," I mumbled, turning to go. Of course I wouldn't get away so easily.

"Hey now," he said, catching my arm. "What were you doing just now?"

There was no lie imaginable I was able to come up with, so I caved. He could probably tell if I lied anyway; I wasn't very good at it. "I was saying goodbye to Vaughn," I sighed.

"Huh." He smiled. "So how's it going, you know, with him?"

I blushed. "Fine," I mumbled.

"Elliot said he saw you guys going up to your land together."

"Ugh!" I groaned. "Is nothing a secret on this Island?"

"Nope," he said, popping the 'p'. "So, you guys, uh, together now?"

"No, no, and don't go telling people different," I told him severely.

"Oh." Denny paused. "I just figured, you know . . . he doesn't talk to just anyone, you know."

"He talks to _you_," I reminded him.

He smirked. "Because I'm awesome like that."

I snorted. "Goodnight, Denny." I began walking away again.

"Wait," Denny called.

I turned again. "_Denny_," I groaned, "I'm tired. I want to home."

"Home!" Poppy squawked.

"I know, I know, it'll just take a sec." He fidgeted uncomfortably. "Did you, uh . . . talk to Lanna yet? About . . . you know?"

I rolled my eyes. "No, Denny," I said fondly.

"_Chelsea_," he whined.

"I'll try to do it tomorrow. But I don't know. I'll be too busy running around giving people chocolate."

He grinned widely. "Oh yeah. Chocolate day. Cool."

I smiled at him and walked away.

"Cool!" Poppy yelled.

I almost ran back to my farmhouse, worried I would run into someone else. I wasn't as quiet as I should have been, but it turned out my efforts would have been futile anyway. Natalie was sitting on the sofa, wide awake, her hand leaning on one of her hands.

"Where have you been?" She asked.

***

I was very busy the next day. I had stocked up on chocolate a few days earlier, knowing that Chen would be closed on Fridays as he always was. The Inn was already done, and it was run by an elderly man that was pretty nice.

They were beginning construction on the Café that morning. Gannon was outside my door when I woke up, telling me that the bridge to the Meadow was complete.

"Also," he continued, "I'm hosting this Island's first festival – the Snow Festival."

"What's that?" I asked.

"It's basically when everyone gets together to build a snowman. Normally I would have the festival much earlier in the season, but I really want to have it this year before spring comes," he explained, eager.

"When is it?" I asked. I had been working a lot lately, so a nice break building snow-people sounded nice.

"For your sake, it's Wednesday," he answered.

I blushed. Julia or Elliot or someone was obviously gossiping. "Okay, Gannon, I'll be there," I said. He lumbered away after telling me to be there by ten o' clock. Natalie went home early that morning, claiming that there was work to be done as always.

"Also," she said before she left, "Grandpa told me that a new person is moving here soon. I just remembered. He'll be here by Sunday."

"He?" I asked, wiggling my eyebrows suggestively.

She pushed me playfully. "Just because I'm desperate doesn't mean I'm going to jump on the first guy who moves here, Chelsea."

I chuckled, and she left. I wondered where the new resident would live, and what he would be like. Hopefully easy to get along with. Before I began my chocolate districting, I decided I would go check out the Meadow.

Up north, when I got to East town, I saw the same workers from yesterday working on the Café. Gannon was there, instructing them again, barking orders.

Taro was there, too, but I was too lazy to go over and ask him about the weather. I crossed the finely-built bridge and looked around. It was just as it had looked from across the river – a really big, wide-open space, perfect for Festivals or just hanging out.

The snow was very deep here, nearly covering my whole foot, snow boot and all. I didn't hang around for long – there wasn't much to look at, but I made a mental note that here would be a good place to come if I needed to clear my head and relax. I decided it would be polite to go up to the workers and say hello.

" Morning, little missy," Taro said as I approached.

Gannon was too busy barking orders to be bothered. "Avery, no, not there you – Rick! Put that down, _no._"

I snickered softly, realizing he was yelling at the very same people he had yesterday.

"How's my granddaughter?" Taro asked. "You see her more than I do."

"Sorry," I said apologetically, "I've tried to get rid of her, if that makes you feel better."

Taro snorted. "Not really. But thanks." There was a bit of an awkward silence, but the old man finally broke it. "My trick knee tells me it'll be cloudy tomorrow," he informed me.

"Thanks," I said politely.

"So," he said conversationally, "People have been talking . . ."

"About?" I asked.

"You and that Vaughn guy," Taro said bluntly.

I cringed away from him. I definitely didn't want to have this conversation, especially with _Taro. _"I gotta go," I said hurriedly, "It's Winter Thanksgiving, you know."

I pulled out two bars of chocolate from my rucksack and gave them to the old man. "You can have one, and there's one for Gannon, too."

"Thank you, little missy," Taro said appreciatively.

I hurried away before he could say anything else. The roads were worn out – I would have to ask Gannon later about fixing them up. I paused to look at the broken bridge up in the north that led into what appeared to be a thick jungle. I wondered for several moments about what could possibly be up there. I would find out, some day . . .

I headed south, along the road again. Oddly, across from Lanna's glamorous house, there appeared to be a bit of a construction site, as if they had started to build but the abandoned it at the last minute.

Lanna was standing outside her house, singing softly to herself. I realized that know would probably be a good time to talk to her about Denny; but how to be tactful?

"Hey, Lanna," I called.

She looked up and smiled at me. "Good morning, Chelsea," she said cheerily, "How are you?"

"I'm great." I looked questioningly over at the partly built building. "You know what's going over there?" I asked as I approached her.

"Yeah – there's someone new coming to live here soon, and Gannon's already started working on the house. He's working on it, and the Café and the Diner all at once. He's real busy – he's closed his shop for a few days, you know?"

"Poor guy's swamped," I agreed, standing in front of her now.

"So . . ." Lanna trailed off.

I searched for something to say. "Were you singing just now?" I asked.

"Oh yes – I'm a pop star, as you know. I came out here as a bit of a vacation." She looked happy as she said this, but there was sadness in her eyes.

I didn't question it. "That's nice. You staying here long?" I asked.

"Oh yes. A very long time." She didn't say more, and I didn't want to pry.

"Today's Winter Thanksgiving, you know," I hedged.

She beamed. "Yes, I know. I'm going to go hand out chocolate to all the boys soon."

"Me too," I said. I paused for a minute, frustrated. _Screw being tactful_, I finally thought. "Denny's really looking forward to seeing you," I told her.

She didn't look surprised. "I know. I want to see him, too."

"You like him?" I asked.

"Yes, he's really sweet. And he's an amazing kisser."

My eyes widened. Denny had been asking to find out if Lanna really liked him, but if they had kissed, then wouldn't it be obvious? "Uh, that's great, Lanna," I said, blushing and looking away.

"Do _you_ like anyone?" she asked curiously. Her question reminded me of elementary school. Again, I felt the uncertainty rise up inside me. What if he didn't want anyone to know?

She chuckled when I remained silent. "I'm only asking because of the rumor that was going around yesterday. It's amazing how fast word travels on this Island."

"There are only so many people to _hear_," I almost snapped.

"Yes," she said, "I suppose."

Something seemed to occur to her. "You know that day in the Animal Shop? When you first introduced me to Julia and she showed me that picture of Vaughn, and she said he was taken?" She looked bewildered.

I sighed, not wanting to explain. "It's complicated," I said lamely. I made some sort of excuse to leave; she seemed to sense my discomfort and she let me go with a small frown.

My chocolate distributing took most of my time during the day. Everyone was delighted with the gift. Denny was the last person I gave a bar to.

"Awesome," he said, turning it over in his hands. We stood on the beach; Poppy was with him, as usual.

"I talked to Lanna; she likes you," I told him, "But you should already know that."

He blushed and looked away. "Yeah, well, sometimes it's hard to tell, even when . . ." he trailed off.

"You should ask her to the Starry Night Festival," I suggested.

He nodded and looked deep in thought. I returned to my farmhouse in the late evening, falling back onto my bed and daydreaming.

Natalie might come over sometime tonight. I groaned and pulled a pillow over my eyes. I was near sleep when I heard a very distinct knock. I sighed and went to answer it. Instead of Natalie, though, Taro stood outside the door, a large box in his hands.

"It's finally here?" I asked brightly, taking it from him.

"Yep, all of it," he said.

I wanted to go in and examine the contents, but perhaps that would have been rude.

"You, uh, want to come in?" I asked after an awkward silence.

"Nope, nope, gotta get home for dinner. Want to come over?" he asked nicely.

I shook my head. "Thanks, though. Is Natalie coming over tonight?"

Taro shrugged. "No idea. See you later, little missy." He waved and turned.

I closed the door and set the box on my little wooden table. A shape formed before my eyes as I turned, and I almost groaned aloud. El now sat on one of my chairs, a lazy expression in his eyes.

"Hi," he said.

"Hey." I remembered his chore. "Thanks for the material stone. I'll build a fence tomorrow."

He waved, dismissing my compliment. "Yeah, yeah. So what's this?"

My first instinct was to tell him to butt out, but I should be nicer to El, even though he annoyed me to no end.

"This is my few belongings from the city. I should have had them send to me long ago, especially since I had some money there, but I hadn't gotten around to it." Quite a bit of money actually – $4500. When I thought about it now, I couldn't believe I had waited so long. But I'd been so busy . . .

I opened the box and took out all the clothes folded on top. There were a few more bandanas, each a different color, though I never wore any one of them besides the red. I also had a locket my mother had given me when I was very young, a CD player, and a few books.

Under all those things was the little safe I recognized. On it were the numbers 1-9. You could either open it with the code or the key. I lifted the safe out and tore the key off the bottom of the safe – I'd had it taped to the bottom so it wouldn't be lost.

I took the key over to my dresser and dropped it in my sock drawer.

El snorted. "How original."

I rolled my eyes and the safe with the code. My money was there, all of it, to my relief. After I counted it, I added up all the money I now possessed. With a bit of surprise I realized that there was enough to build the bridge to the forest. I smiled to myself and ignored El's questioning expression. I would have to ask Gannon . . . but Lanna said he'd closed his shop for a few days because of all the work he was swamped with. But maybe I would ask anyway.

"I'll get the bridge to the forest soon," I murmured absentmindedly.

"And then?" El asked.

"I'll buy a barn, maybe," I mused.

El nodded in approval. "Good."

I got into bed and waited for the Harvest Sprite to leave. He didn't. I figured he had something to say, so I waited, not-so-politely. I got irritated after five minutes, and he seemed perfectly content to sit at my table.

"Was there something you wanted?" I asked.

He looked up at me with his beady eyes. "I heard – no, _saw_, I should say – what happened with you and cowboy man."

I blushed. "What were you watching for?" I snapped.

He shuddered. "Believe me, I didn't stick around for long."

"Why do you dislike him so much?" I wondered aloud.

El sighed and told me he wished I would focus more on my work.

I glared at the little man. "I'm doing fine, thank you very much."

He ignored that. "I will admit, though, that he _does_ like you," he muttered.

"And how would you know?"

El shrugged. "Harvest Sprite powers. We can kind of sense . . . relationships, I guess."

"Oh? How am I doing with the other villagers?" I asked curiously.

He smirked. "Alright, I guess. Lanna is a bit put out with you, however."

I shrugged. "I'll fix it. Maybe."

He snorted. There was another silence, not as short this time. "So he likes me, huh?" I almost whispered, finally.

"I would think you would know that by now," he said.

I sighed. "How _much_ does he like me?"

El opened his mouth to answer, but just then the door flew open and Natalie barged in, a pillow and thin blanket under her arm.

"Hey," she mumbled. She walked to my couch and made up a bed again. I sighed and decided not comment on her sudden arrival, though I was very irked with her interrupting my conversation with the little know-it-all Harvest Sprite.

El smiled at me before disappearing in a puff of smoke that was only visible to me. "Gannon's done with the Café now – the owner's moving in tomorrow," Natalie said as she slid under the blanket. "He's concentrating more on the new resident's house now, since he's coming Sunday."

"Who is he?" I asked.

She shrugged. "My grandpa just said he was a chef or something."

"A chef?" I laughed. "Hmm. That interesting, I guess."

She shrugged and settled back. I told her about my forest-bridge thing. "Cool," she said, "Now we can finally settle the whole pink house mystery."

"I'm _not_ crazy," I sighed, "I know what I saw."

"Yeah, yeah," she said. "Are you and your grouchy boyfriend going to make a snowman together on Wednesday?" she asked suddenly.

I blushed. "He's not . . ." I started to correct her, but I stopped. If she was so convinced she was right, then why not let it be? The idea made me feel all warm and fuzzy. "Yeah, I'll ask," I said.

"I'll make one with my mom," she decided, "And my brother will make one with Julia, I'm sure." She sighed.

We were quiet for the rest of the night, possibly because she was lost in her thoughts. I thankfully closed my eyes, and went to sleep.

***

_When I opened my eyes, I experienced a serious case of déjà vu. Again, wherever I looked, there was nothing but white, as if I had stepped into a sheet of paper. _

_And again, like before, a beautiful woman, which I now knew to be the Harvest Goddess, appeared out of glittering smoke. She smiled sweetly at me. _

"_Hello, Chelsea, how are you?" She asked politely._

_I shrugged. "I know you're building the bridge to the forest soon. It is there we shall meet."_

"_Do you live there?" I asked. _

"_Yes. After you build the bridge, my followers will come to live there, too. You will also meet my nemesis, who lives just south of me." _

"_In the pink house?" I asked eagerly. _

_She frowned. "Yes, that is where." _

"_Is that all you came to tell me?" I asked. I didn't want to be rude, but this whole talking-to-me-in-a-dream was more than a little creepy. _

"_No." She suddenly looked grieved. _

"_What is it?" My voice was concerned. It was unsettling to see this woman so sad. The emotion seemed wrong for her. _

"_I will tell you when you find me," she decided. _

"_Tell me now," I pleaded. _

"_You're boyfriend . . ." The Harvest Goddess trailed off. _

_I braced myself. What if she had changed her mind and now was just as against him as El was? "Yes . . . ?" I pressed, not correcting her. _

_Her eyes suddenly seemed very far away. "Do you remember before when I told you I had . . . plans for your future?"_

_I nodded. _

"_Well . . ." she sighed, "There seems to be some complications." _

_I was suddenly nervous. "What kind of complications?" _

_A light wind blew through the white nothingness, and the Harvest Goddess began to disappear. "I cannot say," she said firmly, her voice getting softer and softer as she drifted away, "But be warned." _

"_Wait," I cried frantically, "What are you talking about?" Even before I was done speaking, she had vanished completely. But just as the dream grew fuzzy, just as I was waking up, I heard her say one more thing. _

"_Pink diamonds." _

**A/N: Love it? Hate it? Feedback is awesome. What would you change about harvest moon: IOH/Sunshine Islands? I would make the kids look like your chosen spouse. **


	13. Falling

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harvest Moon **

_12: Falling _

I woke up from the dream covering in sweat and breathing heavily, as if I'd had an awful nightmare. I saw Natalie was still sleeping when I looked over. I stumbled out of bed and into the bathroom, splashing cold water on my face and on the back of my neck. It felt nice.

It had no doubt now that these two dreams I'd had involving the Harvest Goddess were absolutely relevant. I felt a small twinge of smugness when I realized that I _was_ right about the pink house.

But then I remembered the warning, and shuddered in my nervousness. Vaguely, I recalled her last words.

Pink diamonds.

I was completely puzzled. How would pink diamonds cause any complications between me and Vaughn? I thought deeply about it for several minutes, while I combed my hair and put my bandana on. But I came up with nothing.

Maybe it wasn't the pink diamonds themselves that would be causing problems – maybe it was something _related _in some way to them. I thought of each and every person on this Island, thinking maybe it was an individual.

But nobody I could think of, on this Island, or anyone I'd known in the city, for that matter, had anything to do with the beautiful gems. By the time I walked out of the bathroom, I was downright frustrated, and a little scared, too.

I made myself coffee in the little machine on the counter, but my movements were jerky and tense. It was difficult for me to understand exactly why I was scared. But I really liked being around Vaughn, I reasoned, so I was scared someone would take that joy away from me.

But whom?

I pictured him leaving this Island forever, and the tug I felt in my heart was surprisingly painful. I shoved the image away quickly after that. I was all the more eager now, to build the bridge to the forest.

I would find the Harvest Goddess, no matter where she lived, to talk about this. I had to. I wouldn't be able to relax until I did. I dumped the coffee down my throat and got dressed. Natalie still slept deeply. I glanced at the clock; it was almost seven thirty.

I got out a piece of paper and scribbled a note to her that I had gone, and that she could stay as long as she wanted, as long as she didn't touch anything. But just as I got out the door, El appeared in front of me, rather quickly, I might add. I stumbled backward against the door in alarm.

"Good morning, Chelsea," he said nicely.

I nodded and edged my way around him, walking swiftly towards the Main part of town. I heard his little footsteps following. I figured he would stop following when I left my land, by even as I got into town, I heard him behind me. I glanced over my shoulder. He was staring with a happy expression.

"Going to find Gannon?" El asked.

"Yes," I mumbled, "Go away."

He didn't answer. When I attempted to open the door of Gannon's house, I found it to be locked tight. I found a note scribbled in rough handwriting taped next to the window.

El had disappeared.

_Closed. Will re-open Monday. Sorry for the inconvenience. _

I groaned, even more frustrated. I figured Gannon would be over in East Town, working on the chef's new house. I hurried over. Sure enough, he was directing the small amount of workers, yet again yelling at Avery and Rick.

Unlike previous days, though, Taro was not with him. I walked over and stood on the sidelines, waiting for Gannon's conversation with Rick to end. I examined their work. The house was almost finished, with grey walls and a purple roof.

Above the door, there hung the biggest fork and spoon I had ever seen, crossed like an X. When Gannon had stepped back, his eyes scanning the house, I walked up to him.

"Hey, Gannon," I said.

He looked down at me and kind of smiled politely, but it looked more like a grimace. "Morning," he said gruffly.

"You building the Diner after this?" I asked.

He nodded, his eyes still scanning the house. "Yep."

I fidgeted nervously. "I know you're not supposed to open until Monday, but I have the money to build the bridge to the forest, and I'd really like it done as soon as possible."

"Monday is ASAP," he told me.

Eliza walked around the corner of the house and approached her father. "Daddy, I can't find Charlie anywhere. Do you know where he is?"

Gannon looked fondly down at his daughter. "No, honey, I don't."

She pouted, and then turned to me. "I heard you say you had the money to build the bridge to the forest?"

I nodded.

She beamed and looked up at Gannon with pleading eyes. "Daddy, I _really_ want to explore the forest over there. Can't you build that dumb old Diner some other time? The Café's good enough, anyway," she pleaded.

Gannon was suddenly sympathetic. "I know, Eliza, but . . ."

"_Please, _Daddy?" Eliza's blue eyes widened, her lips quivering. The pouty look was so heart-wrenching that I felt pity as well.

Gannon crumbled, and sighed. He turned to me. "Guess I can have these jokers do it themselves. I'll have it done by tomorrow."

"Yay!" Eliza cheered. She bid us goodbye and went off to find her playmate. I got out the thick wads of money.

"Thanks, Gannon, I really appreciate this. I know you're busy."

He looked a little uncomfortable with my thanks, but he shrugged and took the money. I went back to my land after that, to feed Nugget. She seemed as perky as ever, wandering around her home and chirping.

I cooed lovingly to her for a few minutes and put a piece of fodder in her feeder. Already, she was beginning to grow, and I knew she'd be producing eggs soon and be ready to graze. I worked on building a large material stone fence, relieved I didn't have all the weeds to put.

I built it right outside the coop, next to one of the few boulders I didn't have a prayer of moving. I did have to clear away branches and rocks, though, and some of them were quite heavy; I was sweating when I was done, around noon.

Natalie had been gone when I'd come home, and I hadn't seen her on the way back. Weird. El appeared beside me again.

"Nice work," he said approvingly.

I beamed. "You really think so?" I asked.

He nodded.

"I think I'll fish for the rest of the day," I mused, "There's nothing else I really need to do."

El shrugged. "Good luck with that."

Then he disappeared again. It was annoying, him coming and going as he pleased, but I was getting used to it now. I didn't feel like spending the day alone today.

I knew exactly who I wished I could spend it with. I sighed unhappily. But he wasn't here, of course. I had a phone…maybe once when he was here he could give me the number of where he lived in the city. I liked that idea.

But I'd have to settle for Denny; he was fun to hang around anyway, though unfortunately he came with an obnoxious bird. I saw Charlie walking around outside Denny's house, so I informed him that Eliza was searching for him.

"She wants to see me?" he asked eagerly, "She was so mad at me before . . ." He trailed off and stood in silence for a second. Then he hurried away, calling, "Thanks, lady!" over his shoulder.

I rolled my eyes and walked up to Denny's door. It stood a crack open, so I just pushed it open without knocking. Unfortunately, I walked straight into a make-out session between Lanna and Denny.

I covered my eyes and stumbled backwards, more grossed out than I had been with Julia and Elliot. They heard the noise, and both looked at me with alarm.

"Uh . . . hi, Chelsea," Denny said in embarrassment, a blush coloring his cheeks.

I could do nothing but wince. Lanna didn't look as embarrassed as Denny did; in fact she smiled at me.

"Sorry about that, Chelsea. What did you need?" Though she grinned, her tone implied she wanted me to leave.

"Nothing. See you later," I mumbled, shutting the door on my way out. I fished for a large portion of the day, all alone.

***

Natalie didn't come over that night, and I began to get worried. I wondered where she was. I was a little lonely as I climbed into bed, and I actually wished El would come back so I would have someone to talk to, Harvest Sprite or not.

I was still worried about my Harvest Goddess dream, but I soothed myself with the knowledge that Gannon would have the bridge done by tomorrow. Tomorrow was Sunday, I mused.

Not Wednesday.

Or Thursday.

I wanted to see him again. I wondered if he missed me, too. He was in my dreams when I finally fell asleep. We were leaning against my material stone fence, and there were a dozen chickens inside. Next to that, another fence held many squares of grass with plump, happy cows wandering around inside.

In the distance, I saw a dog running around the house and the shipping bin. Vaughn had his arms wrapped around my waist from behind, and he was kissing my neck. The joy I felt in this dream felt so real that reality confused me when I awoke the next morning. Grumbling in annoyance that I woke up, I got out of bed, and shut off the alarm before it went off.

It was five thirty in the morning. I got ready rather slowly, showering, brushing my teeth and drinking black coffee. I went and fed Nugget, realizing I needed more Chicken feed very soon. I walked slowly back to my farmhouse. At around seven in the morning, I heard a loud knock on the door.

"Chelsea? You there?" Gannon asked.

"Yeah," I called.

"I'm comin' in," he grunted, pulling the door open and lumbering inside. "I built the bridge, and Taro wanted me to tell you that our new resident is here; his name's Pierre."

"The chef?"

"Yeah." He left quickly after I thanked him, not one to linger. I decided that it would be polite to greet the new resident before exploring the forest all day.

When I walked into Main Town, I almost changed my mind and went across the bridge. But I ran into Taro, who was standing just outside his house.

"Going to go see the chef, little missy?" He asked.

"Yes," I said grudgingly.

He jerked his head to the left. "His house is in East Town."

"I know," I said.

The house looked exactly as it had yesterday. I raised my hand and knocked three times. Promptly, it was answered by a very short, very strange little man. He wore a purple suit, with a purple top hat to match, and underneath that his hair was long and blonde. In his right hand, he held a very small spoon.

All in all, he looked to be about Charlie's age.

"Hello," he said in a somewhat high voice, "You must be Chelsea." He stuck out his hand, and I pursed my lips to refrain from giggling. He didn't look anything like I had pictured him.

"Yes," I managed to say, "You're a chef?"

"Yes, I am a professional gourmet," he said proudly, "I've written a few nationally acclaimed cookbooks, and my father owns some of the finest restaurants in the world. I moved here because there were new ingredients to be discovered." He paused. "I'm Pierre, by the way."

"Chelsea?" I heard Natalie's voice call, from behind the man-child.

"Nat?"

Pierre gestured for me to come in. I did. As I had expected, the kitchen largely dominated most of his house, and there were cooking tools I had never seen before. There were books lining the east wall, all on cooking, and the appliances were fancy and sleek. In the corner, there was an ordinary twin bed.

"You have a nice home," I commented.

Pierre beamed at me and went to sit at his little round table. Natalie sat across from him, a large cup of something in her hands.

"Where have you been?" I asked.

She shrugged. "Had a lot of work to do yesterday. Pierre actually got to the Island late last night, so we met him at the beach."

"You could have come got me," I said.

She shrugged, but didn't answer.

"You must have your family come over for dinner sometime, Natalie," Pierre said, "I would make a fine dish for us all."

I told him about the stew we'd had last season. "I imagine that next year we'll have in the Meadow. It's called the Harvest something," I supplied.

"I shall bring my finest ingredient. And now that I'm here, I can host a cooking contest as well," Pierre said cheerily.

I almost groaned. _That_ was a contest I'd never enter.

Natalie and I stayed there for an hour, and it became apparent to me that the only thing Pierre liked to talk about was food. Once, to steer the conversation away from the subject, I told him that Gannon had just recently built the bridge to the forest, but he commented, "Ah, wonderful. There ought to be _thousands_ of ingredients there."

What was really interesting, though, was that although I was bored and eventually annoyed out of my mind, was that Natalie seemed to be neither of those things. She seemed genuinely interested in what the little chef had to say, nodding and smiling politely at him.

It was very, very odd. Usually it was Nat who didn't have patience with people, not me. But that's just because I was so antsy to get to the forest.

It was eight now, and I began fidgeting with anxiety. Pierre offered to make us something for breakfast. "I make the best omelets," he told us.

"I should be going," I said abruptly, "But thank you."

"I'll have one, Pierre," Natalie said.

He turned to me. "Are you sure you won't stay? I promise you won't regret it."

"Really, I should go." I bid them goodbye.

Just as I shut the door, I heard Pierre talking about his omelet ingredients, and I heard him mention mushrooms. I snickered. Natalie _hated_ mushrooms, just as much as Julia hated fish. I wondered how that would go over, and for a second I was tempted to go back in.

But I didn't.

Fortunately, I ran into no one on my way to the bridge, though I saw Elliot and Julia embracing through Mirabelle's window. I sighed. Everyone else had their love interest here every day of the week; I was jealous.

I pushed those thoughts away and crossed the finely-built bridge. The forest wasn't extremely thick, but it was beautiful with its greenery. I was amazed at all the little creatures; the birds, the mice, even the wild dogs I saw wandering around occasionally.

What I was looking for was the Harvest Goddess, but I hadn't been searching for very long when I spotted a white-blonde haired woman just ahead. She seemed to be gathering some sort of mushroom, thought they were ugly and deformed.

I knew little to nothing about mushrooms, but it struck me that the kind this woman was gathering were poisonous.

They weren't the kind I had gotten sick off that once; they were the kill-you-of-you-eat-them mushrooms. I shuddered and stepped out of the shadows of the tall tree I'd stood next to. I made plenty of noise, announcing my presence. The woman whirled, alarmed.

"Who goes there?" She snapped. Her clothes were odd; she wore a deep purple dress partially covered by a black cape thing connected by a skull icon. She was very pretty, though her eyes were an unsettling shade of scarlet.

I raised my hands in the air, because this woman truly did seem frightening. "I'm Chelsea. I live back there." I jabbed my thumb in the direction of Main Town.

She hesitated for a second, and then she seemed calmer. "They finally fixed that bridge, did they? I suppose my peace couldn't last for long," she grumbled.

"Yes, they did. I was just exploring. You wouldn't happen to know where the Harvest Goddess resides, would you?"

Her eyes narrowed, and the hostility was back. "Why?" She said in a very low voice.

Suddenly, a piece of my dream came back to me. _"You will also meet my nemesis, who lives just south of me." _How could I have been so stupid?

"No reason," I said quickly, "It doesn't matter."

She studied me suspiciously. "If you must know, she's North of here, down that path." She pointed at a dirt path I had neglected to notice.

"Oh. Thanks," I said politely.

"Who are you?"

"I am Witch Princess," She answered proudly.

"Witch?" I repeated dumbly.

"Yes. I am a witch." She was suddenly thoughtful. "If you ever should find something I might find useful, bring it to me. I live over there." She gestured to her right. Behind more tall trees, I made out the shape of the pink house I had known was there.

"I will. Uh, bye," I said, wanting to get out of there.

But just as I was leaving, I turned, feeling kind of guilty. "You know, those are poisonous."

A knowing, mischievous smirk crossed her lips. "I know." I shuddered and hurried away.

***

It wasn't difficult to find the plot of land Witch Princess had been referring to. I came to a very large clearing, and beside a small pond there was a sign, the writing faded. I rubbed away the dirt and grime.

_The Harvest Goddess's pond, _it read. I smiled widely. But then I was faced with a dilemma. How should I summon her? Out of the corner of my eye, I saw movement. I whirled in alarm, and out of nowhere, a Harvest Sprite appeared. It wasn't El; this one was wearing blue clothes, and was just a hair taller. He smiled politely at me.

"Hello, Chelsea. My name is Lou."

"Hi, Lou," I replied, surprised to meet another Harvest Sprite.

"Do you wish to summon the Harvest Goddess?" he asked. I nodded.

"Throw an offering into the pond, and she will appear."

I looked over at the pond eagerly, and when I looked back, Lou had disappeared. I wasn't sure what to throw; it was Winter, for crying out loud. I settled on throwing a quarter I happened to have.

Slowly, very slowly, the green glittering mist appeared, and out of it stepped the woman I had seen only in my dreams. The Harvest Goddess smiled at me graciously, and reached out for my hand.

"Chelsea, it's so lovely to finally meet you formally," she said in a charming voice.

I shook her hand. "Yes. Yes, it is," I agreed.

"I didn't particularly care for that offering. I prefer flowers and strawberries," she told me.

"Sorry," I said, annoyed, "I was just trying to get your attention."

She laughed. "Yes, I know. Others will come now that you have built this bridge. My followers shall build here, and there is a mine up that mountain, filled with jewels of great value. They will help you earn money and revitalize this Island further."

"Good to know," I said, "Maybe I'll check it out." I was trying very hard to be polite and exchange normal pleasantries, but there was just one thing I wanted to talk about.

"You seem antsy, child. Why?" She sounded concerned.

I sighed. "I'm worried about what you told me when we last spoke. You know . . . before?" Did my dreams not have relevance at all? Would she call me crazy for believing they were real?

"Yes. When I came to you in a dream."

I exhaled in relief. So I _wasn't _a lunatic. "You said there would be some . . . complications with me and Vaughn."

She nodded thoughtfully. "Yes, I did."

"All you said was 'pink diamonds'," I continued.

"You paid attention," she noted approvingly.

Was she avoiding my question? "What will go wrong?" I asked, almost desperate.

She sighed. "I told you all that I could before. I cannot reveal the future, especially when it is subject to change."

"Change?" I asked.

She held up her hands. "I've said too much."

"Please tell me," I begged.

She shook her head. "No. I cannot." She sounded almost grieved. "All I can do is hope everything works out well. I will not interfere."

I was even more irritated now. My words came out harsher than I'd intended. "All the Harvest Sprites care about is revitalizing this Island. Why aren't you the same way?"

She looked at me almost curiously for a second. "Because I care about you, Chelsea. I care for everyone on this Island. It would pain me greatly if something were to happen to you."

"You don't know me," I retorted.

"No," she admitted, "But I can see you are a good person at heart. I also see," she continued, her voice affectionate, "that you are falling in love with him."

I gaped at her for a good few seconds. "W-what?" I stuttered. "I'm – I'm not. I just, I . . ." My mind couldn't grasp what she was saying just yet.

"I know what I see. I know I am right," the Harvest Goddess said firmly, "whether nor not you choose to acknowledge that it your own decision."

It couldn't be. It just couldn't. I hadn't known him long at all, and he wasn't exactly open with me. All I knew was that he had kissed me, and that meant something about how he felt.

But when I thought about my jealousy of the other couples' time together, how I felt when he was around, how I hated the fact that he was away five days of the week, I knew, somewhere deep in my heart, that it was true.

_**A**_**/N: I'm thinking about writing a fic for IOH/SI set twelve years in the future. It's basically about whether or not Charlie and Eliza end up together. Good idea? **


	14. Mining, followers & realizations

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harvest Moon. But it's an awesome video game. **

_14: Followers, mining, and realizations_

It was Monday.

A horrible, not Wednesday-or-Thursday day. But to pass the time, I'd decided I would head up the mountain this morning and look through the mine the Harvest Goddess had mentioned. I wondered if it really did contain rare and valuable jewels. I

f it did, that was bound to draw people to this Island. I shivered in the heavy snow on my way to the bridge – it seemed colder today than most. I wanted to ask someone about mines before I left, since I didn't really know much about them, but there was no one on the Island with that kind of knowledge.

I'd wanted to say hi to Natalie before I went, but Taro informed me that she was over at Pierre's. "Still?" I asked, assuming the worst.

He snorted. "She came home late last night, and went there again early this morning. By the way, little missy, how's that chicken of yours?"

"Good. Vaughn's bringing me another on Wednesday, and I got a little fence built," I said.

He nodded approvingly. "Good."

I crossed the bridge now, wondering why Natalie was interested in spending all this time at Pierre's house. As far as I knew, she didn't have a major interest in cooking . . . As I entered the thick forest, I saw a figure through the trees.

I shivered, thinking it might be Witch Princess. To be honest, the woman scared me half to death. So I'd stay away from the large pink house that was barely visible from where I now stood.

But as I got closer, it became apparent to me that the figure was Mirabelle. She moved briskly from one place to another – she appeared to be looking for something. I found it odd she wasn't back in Main Town, running the Animal Shop. I stepped into the little clearing she was in, calling her name.

She whirled, and looked greatly relieved. "Oh, Chelsea, thank goodness."

She walked up to me, shivered in her thin coat. "Have you been here recently?" She asked.

I shrugged. "I came over yesterday, right after Gannon built the bridge. Why?"

She looked distressed. "I came yesterday, too, and I noticed a scrawny little dog with a bandana kind of like yours. I've seen wild dogs before, but this one looked relatively tame, the poor dear. It ran away before I could try and bring it back with me, but I've been looking for it all morning. The weather is horrid – the poor thing must be frozen stiff."

The compassion in her voice touched me. "I'll help you look, Mirabelle," I offered.

She beamed, and then we began searching together. Unfortunately, we ran into Witch Princess; we'd gotten closer to her house than I'd realized.

"Hello, Witch Princess," I said a bit nervously.

She smirked at me and hid her hands beneath her black cape-thing. The skull emblem seemed to stare evilly. "Morning, Chelsea." She said, nodding.

She glanced at Mirabelle, but didn't ask about who she was. "Have you seen a dog pass by here?" I asked timidly.

She looked annoyed. "The only animals I care about are bears, and I rarely pay attention to the others. But if you must now, I believe I saw a rather skinny one go that way." She pointed north.

"Thank you," I said promptly.

I turned and half-pulled Mirabelle in my hurry. "Who was that, dear?" Mirabelle asked when we believed Witch Princess was out of earshot.

I shuddered. "No one we should get to know."

But it turned out she had been right.

We located the little dog at the base of a large tree, not far from the Harvest Goddess's pond. It growled lowly as we approached, but Mirabelle soothed it with soft, loving words and soon had it in her arms.

"The poor thing," she murmured again.

We carried it back to the Main Part of town and into the Animal Shop.

"How, how cute!" Julia exclaimed.

he and Elliot had been in the kitchen, but now she came out to pet the little dog. Elliot lingered behind, his expression a bit nervous. I refrained from rolling my eyes.

Mirabelle explained that we'd found it in the forest. Julia was just as sympathetic for it as her mother had been. "Elliot, come and say hello," Julia called.

Elliot stood behind her nervously. "No thanks," he mumbled, "That's . . . not my favorite animal."

Julia looked annoyed.

Mirabelle turned to me. "Julia, Vaughn and I have more than our fair share of animals to take care of in the back. You have more than enough room, don't you, Chelsea?" She asked sweetly.

Hesitantly, I petted the little animal. It licked my hand.

"See? It likes you already." Mirabelle handed me the dog.

"Alright," I agreed.

It would be nice to have a companion of sorts around. Perhaps it could be trained to chase El around. I smirked at the thought.

"Give it a name," Julia encouraged.

I stroked its light fur. "I'm not real creative. I named my chicken Nugget," I sighed.

Elliot chuckled. "But I think I'll call it Woody," I decided.

"Why Woody?" Julia asked.

I shrugged. "It was found in a forest. I don't know," I mumbled.

"Woody it is then," Mirabelle said, "I can sell pet food from now on, dear." She walked behind the counter and pulled out several bags of it. "On the house," she said nicely.

"That's really not necessary." I blushed.

"I insist," Mirabelle said.

Elliot and Julia walked me back to my land, the bags of feed in their arms while I carried Woody. The little dog seemed much happier now. Julia told me that a dog was supposed to be kept in the stable with a horse, but I insisted I wanted Woody to live with me in the farmhouse.

Julia shrugged and carried the feed in the house. Elliot and Julia stacked them neatly in the corner. "Thanks," I said politely. They said 'you're welcome' and left soon afterwards.

I took the little dog in the bathroom and cleaned it up, placed it in an old basket I had with a blanket, and Woody soon fell asleep.

I was getting fed up with Natalie not being around. Granted, it was nice to have privacy at night because she hadn't been coming over anymore. But I'd gotten used to it, and her being around had distracted me from thinking about Vaughn, about how long it was until he came back to the Island.

I'd taken a short nap when I'd gotten home, and when I woke up it was almost eleven. I went to Pierre's house, assuming she'd be there.

Again.

I knocked loudly three times, and sure enough, Natalie was the one to answer. A warm, mouth-watering aroma wafted out the door. "Hey, Chels," Nat said cheerfully, "Want to join us for breakfast?"

I rolled my eyes. "No, I want to talk to you, you ditcher."

She snickered and looked over her shoulder. "Pierre," she called, "I'm going for a walk with Chelsea."

"You'll be back, right?" I heard Pierre's voice call, presumably from the kitchen, "I made the most marvelous Eggs Benedict."

"Yeah, I won't be long." Natalie shut the door and we began walking north, past Lanna's house and trying to ignore the workers building the almost-done Diner. The Café was open now, so we went inside there.

"Chelsea," she whined when I tried to buy some toast, "Don't. Come back and eat with me and Pierre. It'll be great."

I rolled my eyes again. "I would, Nat, but I want to go explore the forest and the mountain today." I eyed her unhappily. "I'd ask you to come, but somehow I think you'll say no."

She didn't answer, and didn't comment again when I bought the toast and juice. I ate it quickly, planning to begin my interrogation afterwards. She was silent the whole time, deep in thought. Finally, after I returned the plate and glass, I turned to her in exasperation.

"Spill," I commanded.

She shrugged. "He's . . . nice. And he's a lot of fun."

"Fun? All he ever does is cook. And when he's not cooking, he's thinking about it, I'm sure," I grumbled, "What do you see in him?"

She sighed. "I'm not really sure, but there's something there. I like him. You know how I despise mushrooms? He made me an omelet yesterday, and it was awesome!"

"You're basing this off food?" I asked critically.

"No," she snapped, "I . . . you just don't understand."

"No," I admitted, "I don't."

Her eyes narrowed. "Well, _I _don't understand what you see in that cowboy. But I've kept my mouth shut."

"No, you haven't," I reminded her, "In fact, you couldn't stop making fun of me and cracking jokes."

She acted as thought I hadn't spoken. "Whatever. He's cool. You'll see."

We began walking back to Pierre's house. "Haven't you noticed that he looks like he's . . . twelve?" I asked tentatively.

She glowered. "He _doesn't,_" she argued.

"He looks like he hasn't hit puberty," I laughed.

She fidgeted uncomfortably. "Fine, he does look a little young. Kind of. But if Pierre looks too young, Vaughn's looks, like, eighty."

I made a face at her. "He looks good with the silver hair," I said.

She rolled her eyes. "Sure he does."

I remembered a while ago; when I had wished Natalie had a boyfriend I could easily poke fun of. Now it seemed like it would only cause incessant bickering. Natalie walking into Pierre's house without saying goodbye, slamming the door in my face.

I still couldn't help but snicker a few times on my way to the forest, though. Taro said the weather would be nice tomorrow as I passed his house, so that was good. If for some reason I fell through a deep, dark hole in the mines and passed out, at least the weather would be good for trying again tomorrow. I snorted.

I had to admit that I _was_ nervous about falling. I would have to be very, very careful. Fortunately, I didn't find Witch Princess wandering in the woods like before, and she wasn't visible standing right outside her house when I squinted at it through the tall trees.

She must be staying in today, doing who-knows-what. I hurried north. I had planned on heading straight up the mountain path I'd seen before without stopping (I was still annoyed with the Harvest Goddess for not revealing more about the 'complications'), but the beautifully built building stopped me in my tracks.

A tall, magnificent bell stood beside the structure, and the glass that made up the windows were red, gold, and all other deep, rich colors. The building was truly grand, and I stopped to stare and wonder. Gannon had not built this.

I hadn't even seen him come over into the forest. Just then, though, a girl, probably my age, came out in long, red and blue clothes. Her hair was short and red, and her eyes were just as bright and blue as mine were. She didn't see me at first; she walked over to the Harvest Goddess pond and stared in silence for several minutes.

I watched for a minute before approaching hesitantly. "Miss?" I asked.

She turned slowly, a smile on her lips. "Oh, hello. Who are you?" She asked in a melodic voice.

"I'm Chelsea, this Island's farmer," I said.

She nodded. "I am Alisa, a follower of the Harvest Goddess. I am under the guidance of Nathan." She gestured toward the building, which she told me was a church. "Come, let me introduce you."

The inside was just as pretty as the outside. I gawked in amazement. A short, brown-haired man in the same sort of clothes as Alisa looked up as we came in, smiling. "Hello," he said to me, "I am Nathan."

I complimented them on the grandeur of the church.

"Thank you. It is wonderful, isn't it?" Nathan asked.

"Yes. But I haven't paid or asked the Island's carpenter to build it. And it got here so fast . . . how?" I wanted to know.

Nathan smiled wider. "That Harvest Goddess can do many things," he said cryptically.

I decided not to question it. We made small talk for a few minutes, but then I excused myself, telling them about my plans.

"Do be careful," Alisa said, "It can be dangerous."

I nodded. "Yes, thank you."

"If you like," Nathan said, "You can come back here when you're through, so we know you're okay. If you don't come back, we'll alert the others and come looking for you."

I smiled at their kindness. "Sure. Uh . . . I'll be back before the sun sets," I told them.

They nodded in unison, and then I left. The climb up the mountain was rather steep, and I ran into a few wild animals along the way, like rabbits and squirrels and two wild dogs (which I stealthily avoided).

But as the climb got steeper, the sightings happened less and less often. There were forks in the path now and then, but when I switched course, I just ran into a dead end. I was fairly annoyed by the time I came to the third fork, but I went right anyway.

This time, at the end of this path, I was greeted by a large cave. It looked incredibly dark in the very back – the sunlight only illuminated about half of the 'room'. I'd brought a flashlight, thankfully, so I dug it out now. I also got out my hoe.

Perhaps I would find coins in the dirt. I had no idea how to get deeper into the mine until it occurred to me that the only way would be stairs. And those stairs were most likely buried. I groaned and stepped forward. As I got deeper inside, I tested each footstep I took by putting only a little bit of my weight on it.

If the ground seemed firm, I took another step. Only one time the ground seemed crumbly and weak. I uncovered the first layer of dirt with my hoe. Sure enough, a deep, dark hole waited below; it looked very deep when I looked down with my flashlight.

I shuddered at the thought of falling down it. I found the stairs fairly quickly, and descended to the second floor. There were a few rocks scattered around here, but not very many. I decided to go down one more floor to find more 'rocks'.

I uncovered two more pit falls before finding the second set of stairs, though they weren't as deep as the first had been. I went down to the third floor. Indeed, a lot more rocks were scattered around. I was very careful moving around again, but I got out my hammer and hit the rocks as hard as I was able.

I uncovered a lot of junk ores, which were virtually worthless. But I also found topaz some other pretty gems. I had about eight by the time I decided to go back up. I almost fell down one more pit fall in my hurry to get out of this dark place, but I saved myself in time and headed back out.

It was a relief to go outside and into the sun, a relief to walk around without fear of falling into some deep and scary pit. I made it down the mountain and went into the church to tell Nathan and Alisa I was fine.

I left soon afterwards and headed back to the bridge, relieved yet again when I didn't bump into Witch Princess. When I got to my farmhouse, I put all the jewels in the shipping bin and threw away the junk ores. It was almost four by then.

I was exhausted from all my work, so I crawled into bed. I must have fallen asleep, because when I woke up it was very dark. I heard snoring coming from the direction of the couch. I smiled fondly when I saw Natalie's sleeping form.

I pulled off my shoes and my bandana and got under the covers, much more comfortable this time.

***

A loud knocking awoke me the next day. Natalie groaned and rolled over; the movement dumped her onto the floor. I snickered and got up.

She sat up and grumbled unintelligible things.

"Come down to the beach with me," Taro barked professionally, "We've got some new arrivals."

"Why do all these new people arrive so early in the morning?" Natalie mumbled, standing up and coming to stand next to me.

"Because that's when the boat gets here," I explained.

She rolled her eyes. We followed the old man to the beach, Elliot and Felicia trailing behind.

"Is Gannon building a house for them?" I asked.

"He worked on it most of the night yesterday – poor guy's exhausted. But it should be done sometime tomorrow. You should see it – it's huge," Taro commented.

Huge? I wondered. Why would anyone need a huge house out here? The boat was just pulling away from the dock as we approached. I studied them both closely.

The man was very tall, and he was wearing a very long cape thing, much longer than Witch Princess's, and not as dark. His hair was black and short, his skin was pale and the collar of the cape thing stood straight up. I almost chuckled, thinking of Dracula.

The girl who stood next to him was much less . . . creepy, for lack of a better word. She had long black hair tied up in a light purple bow that matched her dress, and her skin was pale, too. She wore glasses much like Elliot's, and she was fidgeting nervously. All in all, she was very pretty.

"My, what a crude little home," the man said, his voice just as creepy as his appearance. He was looking at Denny's house with distaste in his eyes.

"That's where Denny lives. He's really nice," I said defensively. This man had been here for all of two minutes, and he was already irritating me.

He made a dismissive motion with his hands. "I see. Anyway, I am Regis." He paused for a second, as if he expected us to applaud or something. When we remained silent, he continued, "And this is my lovely daughter, Sabrina. We came here because we heard of a newly discovered mine. I own a very large, very respected mining company, and I expect this Island earn me a large profit," he said with satisfaction.

"Hello," Sabrina murmured shyly, "It's very good to meet you all."

We all exchanged customary greetings, and when I said I was the rancher, Regis raised one black brow. "Do you mine, Chelsea?" he asked.

I shrugged. "I did a little yesterday – I only just had the bridge built last Sunday."

He nodded. "Yes, well, I shall buy whatever jewel you mine."

"I'm sure there will be tourists coming here to mine as well," Taro interjected.

Regis nodded. "Yes, I'm sure. Now, please direct us to the nearest Inn until our home is complete. I hear the carpenter here is good at his job. I expect a marvelous house."

"It will be grand, I assure you," Felicia said.

They had a lot of bags, but we all took one or two and carried it with us to the Inn. Sabrina was very quiet on the way – she seemed very shy. I decided that I liked her. Regis got the most expensive room they had. I rolled my eyes.

"Father," Sabrina said quietly, "Perhaps we should go and meet the other Islanders?"

"Later, Sabrina, later. I'm quite exhausted from our trip." Regis said as we put the bags in the room.

"I could give you a little tour, Sabrina," I offered, "If you'd like."

Sabrina smiled at me. "That would be lovely, thank you."

Regis went into his room and Taro and his family went home. I took Sabrina around to meet everyone, and they all seemed to like her, as I did. Natalie came with us up until we came to Pierre's, and then she stayed behind. She smiled nicely at me before she went in, so I assumed she was over our little fight from before.

"This is a beautiful Island," Sabrina commented as we approached the Inn again.

"Yes, it really is," I agreed.

"And you're going to, um, revitalize it?" she asked, "and run a farm?"

"Yes. I think I'm off to a good start. I have a dog and a chicken. I'm going to build a barn soon," I told her.

She nodded thoughtfully. "I will come help you sometime if you wish, after my home is complete."

I nodded. "If you want."

I thought Sabrina was very nice and kind, from what I had witnessed just now. I would find her company pleasant in the future, I was sure. "So, mining, huh?" I asked, "That's cool."

She laughed softly. "Yes, it is. I love to collect interesting stones. It's a hobby of mine."

"Really? What do you have?" I didn't want to sound nosy, I but I was honestly curious.

"Oh, lots of things – emeralds, rubies, sapphires . . . Father buys a ton of jewels," she said, "But my favorite gems are the diamonds – they're so lovely, don't you think?"

"Yes. I've seen some, in jewelry stores," I mused, "I wish I had one. Perhaps I'll get deep enough in the mine someday."

She nodded. "Yes. The regular diamonds are beautiful, of course, but there is a specific type of diamond I think is the most spectacular."

"Oh? Which one?" I asked curiously.

When I looked back on this conversation deep in the future, I couldn't believe it wasn't obvious. I should have been anticipating what she would say next, should have remembered my dream.

But I didn't see it coming.

So, when she did say it, I was in no way prepared. But afterwards, my chest tightened and my heart hammered. She looked deep in thought.

"Pink diamonds, I think, are the best."

**A/N: I heard somewhere that Sabrina doesn't like actual diamonds that aren't pink, but oh well. **


	15. Snow Day

**Disclaimer: All credit is given to Natsume for HM. **

_15: Snow Day_

I'm not sure how long I stood there, gaping at her. She might have thought I was insane, but for the moment I simply didn't care. It felt like a ton of bricks had fallen on me. But when I thought about it, I couldn't believe I didn't see it the instant Regis said he owned a mining company.

Mining.

Jewels.

Diamonds.

The pieces fit together pretty easily. But even after I grasped this, I was flabbergasted. I had just met Sabrina, it was true, but she seemed so polite, so shy, and so easy to be around. How could _she_ be the 'complications' the Harvest Goddess had warned me about? I saw that her expression was now concerned.

"Chelsea . . . ? Chelsea, are you alright?" She asked.

I snapped out of my daze and nodded. "Um, yes, I'm fine. It's just something I suddenly remembered . . ."

She nodded and didn't pry. "I see. Well, if you'll excuse me, I must be going. Perhaps we could have tea sometime?" Sabrina took her glasses off and wiped them off with a small rag she pulled out of her dress pocket.

I nodded and stepped back. "Sure. Bye now," I said, whirling and nearly running back to my farmhouse. I sat down on my bed; Woody jumped up on it and licked my hand. I stroked his back.

"This can't be right, can it?" I murmured to the little dog, "How could it be?"

He wagged his tail. I was deep in thought for a long time, until I concluded that it was best to stay away from the shy black-haired girl, just to be on the safe side. Until then, I was going back to the Harvest Goddess's pond.

Now that I knew whom she'd been referring to when she'd warned me, maybe she would talk to me about it a bit more. I hurried into the Forest, not even attempting being quiet so as not to run into Witch Princess.

It didn't matter to me today.

I ran so fast through the trees my hair blew out behind me in a gust. I finally halted when I came to the pond, not far at all from the church where Alisa and Nathan now lived. I grabbed the nearest thing I saw – a rock – and threw it in.

After a minute, the gray mist and glittering green sparkles appeared before my eyes. The Harvest Goddess looked annoyed. She held up the rock and raised one eyebrow in question.

I sighed. "Sorry about the rock – I just needed to talk to you."

The Harvest Goddess shrugged and chucked the rock – it rolled and stopped just a few feet from the church. "What is it, dear?" She asked sweetly.

I swallowed hard. "I think I know what you meant about pink diamonds – or rather, I know _who _you meant," I explained.

She nodded slowly. "Yes, I thought you might put the pieces together. She just moved here, didn't she?"

"Yeah," I said, "But surely you're wrong. Sabrina seemed like a perfectly wonderful person . . ."

The Harvest Goddess looked almost sympathetic now. "She is, dear. Sabrina is a lovely girl."

I didn't ask how she knew that. "But . . . ." I trailed off stupidly.

The Harvest Goddess shrugged and spoke it a low voice. "She might cause you a few problems, but that doesn't mean she's a bad person. She has just as much right to win his heart as you do."

I took a step back from her, feeling slightly betrayed. "I thought you wanted this to work with me and him," I almost spat.

The pity became more pronounced on her face.

I hated it.

"Do you know?" I asked, almost desperately, "Do you know how this whole thing is going to play out? Do you know if I'll . . ." My voice broke in mid-sentence.

She sighed. "I admit I don't know the details, but I have a general idea."

"And you're not going to tell me, are you?" I groaned.

She shook her head, her lips pursed. "I'm afraid not, dear. But I'm sure you'll find happiness; you deserve it." She began to disappear, and I didn't even try to stop her. Like before, I sensed that there was nothing else she would tell me, nothing I didn't already know.

I sighed in frustration, and began walking home slowly. About a hundred feet into the Forest, I saw movement out of the corner of my eye. I whirled, alarmed, my hands coming up instinctively. I heard amused laughter, but saw nothing.

But then, slowly, Witch Princess appeared before my eyes, much like Harvest Goddess, though she didn't feel the need to add sparkles and smoke.

"Oh. Hello, Witch Princess," I muttered, dropping my hands.

She nodded once. "Going home, Chelsea? I noticed you talking to the Harvest Goddess." Her expression was sour.

"Yes, I asked her a few things. But she didn't tell me anything particularly useful."

Witch Princess smirked. "I don't normally care about this sort of thing, but what's the problem?"

I bit my lip, hesitant to tell this odd person. But I told her the general gist of it, that a strange girl had moved to the Island and there would be some issues that came with her.

Witch Princess nodded after I was done. "That's quite a situation. I don't have much experience in that area, so I'm afraid I have little advice to offer. But if I were you," she said, her eyes alight with mischief, "That girl would know I meant business."

"She hasn't done anything," I defended.

Witch Princess shrugged. "I know. I must be going now. Let me know how it all works out," she said. I sighed and nodded, wishing she offered more helpful advice. She disappeared just as quickly as she'd appeared, so I went back to my farmhouse.

El was there, sitting on my bed, petting Woody, who was panting contentedly. I smiled slightly at the pair of them. El didn't ask what was wrong with me; he probably already knew, what with his all-mystical Harvest Sprite powers.

I rolled my eyes and fell back on the bed, falling asleep and dreaming of better things.

***

I woke up very early the next morning – five AM, to be exact. Woody was already up, so I put food in his dish and, after he ate, I let him out to roam around in the light of the rising sun. I ate a small breakfast of gathered herbs I had left over from last season and a cup of black coffee. I wondered idly what time Vaughn's boat got to the Island.

I wanted to meet up with him, but I also didn't want to wait at the beach forever. But I could hang out with Denny, providing he didn't ditch me for Lanna, until it came. So I went into the chicken coop to feed Nugget, cooed to her lovingly for a moment, and then left my land.

I smiled on my way, remembering that today was the Snow Festival, the day when we all forgot our worries and made snow-people together. And that was just what I was going to do – forget everything that was bothering me and have fun in the snow.

The air was cool and blustery, but I was warm inside the warm Lanna-given coat. I couldn't see any boat coming to the Island out on the horizon, so I went and knocked on the door of Denny's house. He didn't answer.

I pounded much harder on the door. Finally, a very sleepy-eyed, annoyed Denny answered the door, Poppy not on his shoulder, for once.

What is it, Chelsea? It's five thirty in the morning, you know." He yawed hugely.

I laughed. "I'm waiting for Vaughn's boat to come. Do you know when it arrives?"

"Yeah, it'll be here around six." He stretched and looked up at the clear sky. "Might as well start fishing now that I'm up." He went into his house before I could speak again with a sturdy fishing pole in his hands. He started walking to the water's edge and gestured for me to follow.

I did, pulling my own fishing pole out of my rucksack and sitting beside him on the beach. "So, how are things?" I asked as we waited for bites.

He blushed. "Okay, I guess. I'm sorry about before, when you walked in on Lanna and me."

I shrugged and averted my eyes. "It's alright – my fault," I murmured.

Silences around Denny had never been awkward, but this one was. "How are things with you?" He asked.

I shrugged. "Just peachy," I said sarcastically. I was surprised when he didn't ask me about what was wrong, but when I looked back at him I saw his line was jerking, and he quickly reeled in a large fish.

I laughed in amazement. "I'll never know how you do it, Denny."

He smiled. "It's in my blood," He answered simply.

"Today's the Snow Festival, you know," I said.

He nodded. "Yeah, Lanna's building a snow man with me."

I laughed. "I should have guessed."

"You building one with Vaughn?" Denny asked.

I nodded. "If he'll go."

"He will." Denny sounded sure.

It was quiet after that, and by six, the sun was fairly high in the sky and it was much lighter out. I finally saw a boat approaching the Island in the distance. I got to my feet and stuffed the fishing pole in my bag.

Denny chuckled quietly. "I guess I'll go now. See you in the Meadow, Chelsea." He took the large fish into his house with him. I ran out onto the dock, ignoring how the wind bit at my cheeks.

The boat pulled up alongside the dock, and he came out onto the dock, a bag over his shoulder. My heart swelled with joy as I looked him over. He was just the same as always, though there were shadows under his eyes; he must be very tired. He looked surprised to see me, but then he smiled slightly.

"Hey," he said.

"Hey," I replied.

He set the bag down on the dock as the boat pulled away and started moving away, towards its next stop. He wrapped his arms around my waist and kissed me sweetly. "I missed you," I said breathlessly.

"I did, too. It's so incredibly dull and noisy in the city," he murmured.

"So why don't you move?" I asked, running my fingers through the hair that wasn't covered by the hat.

He smirked. "I have a job there; this is only part of it, you know?"

I bent and picked up his bag and started walking. He walked beside me, taking the bag back, muttering that I didn't need to carry it.

"Today's the Snow Festival, you know?" I said cheerfully.

"It is?" He asked, frowning a little.

I took his hand, the one that wasn't holding the bag. I wished he wasn't wearing the black fingerless gloves. "Yes, it will be fun. We can make a snowman together," I said softly. I was still walking a tentative line – we hadn't made any sort of declaration, but . . .

"Alright. I just hope not a lot of people talk to me," he groaned.

"Except me," I clarified.

He squeezed my hand. "Yes. Except you."

We walked into the Animal Shop together. Julia was already up, lying on the couch with a magazine in her hands. She looked up when we came in; she glowed with happiness. "Did Chelsea come to meet you, Vaughn? That's so sweet."

Vaughn rolled his eyes and went back to his room. I paused, not sure if I should follow. Julia watched him walk away.

"He really likes you, you know," she said lowly, so he couldn't hear.

"I think so, too," I said.

Mirabelle came out of the hall and stopped in front of me. "You need something, dear?" she asked.

"She came with Vaughn," Julia said.

"Oh," Mirabelle murmured. She went into the kitchen, a small smile on her lips. We all ate breakfast together, despite me saying I'd already had it. "What did you eat?" Mirabelle asked suspiciously.

"Wild grasses and coffee," I answered promptly.

"That's not breakfast. Sit down, Chelsea, and I'll make us something."

I sat next to Vaughn, and Julia sat across from the both of us. "Did Chelsea already tell you about today's Festival?" She checked.

Vaughn nodded.

"And you're going to come?" Julia probed.

"Yes," He groaned.

She nodded, satisfied. When breakfast came – eggs, toast and juice – Julia said something that made me stiffen. "We got some new arrivals, yesterday, Vaughn. A man named Regis; he owns a really big mining company."

Vaughn raised an eyebrow. "Regis Darshan?" He asked.

Julia shrugged. "I don't know."

"I've heard of him. He's got the biggest mining company in the world," Vaughn told us.

"They had a large house – no, a _mansion_ built in East Town. Gannon said it would be done before the Festival started – I think they've moved in by now," Mirabelle mused, "You'll see it on our way to the Festival."

"His daughter came with him – her name is Sabrina," Julia informed him, taking a bite of the toast.

My heart was beating entirely too fast, but I scolded myself for overreacting. He would meet both of them eventually – it wasn't like there was an overwhelming population to keep track of here.

"Huh," Vaughn said indifferently. I sighed in relief at this reaction.

"They're lovely people, though I'll admit Regis is a bit . . . uh . . ." Mirabelle trailed off.

"Creepy?" Julia suggested.

Mirabelle nodded. "Yes, that's it." She cleared the table and set the dishes in the sink.

"I'll do those, Mom," Julia offered.

I got up to help her, but Vaughn kept put a hand on my arm. I turned. "Come help me with the animals," he said.

I shrugged and followed him into the back room. Something occurred to me. "Weren't you supposed to bring a chick for me?"

Vaughn smirked. "Yeah, but Mirabelle called and said that some of the eggs these chickens laid had hatched." He gestured down to them.

Indeed, there were three little fuzzy chicks stumbling around. I cooed over them and picked out the smallest one. "I like this one," I decided, "Nugget needs a friend."

"Yes, I'm sure she does." I could hear the smile in his voice, and I knew he was _still_ mocking my name-choice. "I suppose you're going to name your cow Milk or Milkshake?" He snickered.

I put my hands on his chest and pushed lightly. "Oh, be quiet. For your information, I'm going to name my first cow Bessie."

He snorted. "How original."

"Okay, Mr. Smart-alec, _you _can name the second cow I get," I said.

He paused to consider that. "Alright. I will." He sounded amused.

We worked for a little over an hour, and I gave him the silent treatment the whole time. Finally, as I was bending down to pick up my new little chick, I felt his arms around my waist from behind and his lips at my ear.

"Sorry about the name thing. But you have to admit, you're not very creative." His breath tickled my skin.

I leaned my head back against his shoulder and kissed the side of his throat. He sucked in a sharp breath at that, and I smirked. "Does that bother you?" I murmured.

"No," he answered, "I'm not real creative, either."

We carried the chicken back to my farmhouse. "Why would the owner of the world's largest mining company move here of all places?" Vaughn asked while I introduced the two birds.

They seemed to like each other. I turned my head to hide my grimace, but I explained grudgingly. "I just paid Gannon to build the bridge to the Forest; there's a mine up there." I straightened up and went to go get a piece of bird feed for the second feeder.

When I turned back with the bag in my arms, he looked slightly annoyed.

"What?" I asked, dumping the feed in.

"It doesn't seem fair that you're the one who has to build all these bridges. Shouldn't the rest of the villagers contribute?" He grumbled.

I smiled and reached out for his hand. "I really don't mind," I said honestly, "It makes me proud I was able to build them – err, I mean, pay Gannon to."

Another thought seemed to cross his mind, and he looked almost disturbed. "What is it now?" I asked, anxious.

"I don't know much about mines, but I've heard they've got some awfully deep pitfalls. You should be careful up there – or not go up at all," he said.

I smiled at his concern. "I'll be fine; I'm careful," I told him.

He nodded once and pulled me through the door. It was about nine thirty now. "We should start walking to the Meadow," I suggested. I expected he would drop my hand now that we were walking through Main Town publicly, but he didn't.

I blushed a dark red when I saw Chen, Charlie, Elliot, and Mirabelle all hanging around Main Town, probably on their way to the Meadow themselves. I was thankful neither Julia nor Natalie was around. Mirabelle smiled at me as we passed.

When we stepped into East Town, my mouth fell open. Mirabelle hadn't been kidding when she'd called Regis and Sabrina's home a mansion. It was made out of sturdy blue bricks, and three stories tall. On the third floor, there was an elegant balcony with many pots of beautiful flowers and plants.

The whole stricture was almost as breathtaking as the church.

"Wow," I managed to say, "That's . . . that's really something."

Vaughn shrugged. "They're rich, after all."

"_Too_ rich," I grumbled, "No one should have that much money."

Just as we passed the door, it opened Sabrina and her father stepped outside. I bit my lip as they approached.

"Hey, Chelsea," Sabrina said pleasantly. She fell silent when she saw who I stood next to.

"Good day." Regis nodded once to us, and placed a hand of his daughter's arm. "Sabrina, let's go. The sooner we get there, the sooner we can leave. There is much work to be done."

"Just a second, father," Sabrina murmured, her eyes still on Vaughn.

Regis frowned impatiently.

I squeezed Vaughn's hand. He looked down at me and smiled slightly.

"Who's this, Chelsea?" Sabrina finally asked.

Regis crossed his arms over his chest, his expression expectant.

"This is Vaughn," I said reluctantly, "He's the Island's animal dealer. He's only here Wednesdays and Thursdays."

"Hello; I'm Sabrina, and this is my father, Regis," Sabrina said shyly.

"I own a majorly successful mining company," Regis barked.

Vaughn nodded. "Yeah, I've heard of you."

Regis smiled, pleased.

We walked to the Meadow together, unfortunately. I could see the four people I'd seen in Main Town trailing behind us. We arrived at almost ten. Almost all of the town's residents were there, once Elliot, Chen, Charlie and Mirabelle came. Taro was strangely absent.

"Okay, it's time to start!" Gannon yelled, "Start makin' snowmen!"

Everyone got into pairs. Denny and Lanna, Elliot and Julia, Natalie and Pierre, Mirabelle and Felicia, Charlie and Eliza, Chen and Gannon . . . I turned to Vaughn. He looked a little uncomfortable. I laughed and bent to start the first and biggest roll.

The snow was a bit too powdery; it didn't stay in clumps very easily. When I finally got one together and started rolling it around, I saw Vaughn beginning to put one together, too. Sabrina and her father were a little ways away, making a snowman of their own.

They seemed focused on their work, but every so often, I saw Sabrina sneak a glance at him out of the corner of my eye. I sighed, wishing she would stop so I could enjoy my snow-person-making. Vaughn noticed my discomfort.

"Something wrong?" He asked as he heaved the medium-sized roll onto my huge one.

"Nothing," I lied.

When the snowman was done we stepped back to admire our work. Apparently the rolls hadn't been as big as I'd thought.

"That's the most pathetic snowman I've ever seen," Vaughn chuckled.

As we watched, the head of the snow man rolled onto the ground. I made a face at it and looked at everyone else's work.

Their snow-people were just as crappy. Finally, I saw Denny give up and kick his snow man over, stomp on it, and destroy it completely.

"These snowmen suck," he declared.

He bent down and gathered a small snowball in his hands. Without warning, he whipped around and hurled it straight at me. It hit right smack in the middle of my face; I staggered back and wiped by eyes in alarm. When I could see and my cheeks were stinging with the cold, I saw a wickedly amused Denny.

"This means war," I told the fisherman lowly.

Denny lifted one hand and curled two fingers invitingly. "Bring it."

Chaos broke out after that; snowballs were hurled and received. I looked over to see Charlie wildly trying to construct some kind of fort to protect the shrieking Eliza.

"I'm getting all wet!" She complained.

I laughed loudly at the commotion and turned to look for Vaughn. He seemed to be trying to hide behind a small tree. I forgot all about getting even with Denny when I spotted him. Smiling deviously, I made a snowball and snuck up behind him.

I hurled it at him, right at the back of his head. It struck just where I'd planned; the powdery snow slid down the back of his shirt as he stiffened in alarm.

He whirled around. "Traitor," he accused.

I laughed and then tensed when he bent and made a snowball of his own. I snickered, turned, and ran. I ran straight to the heart of the Meadow, where snowballs still flew in the air and struck their intended targets. I paused to glance over my shoulder.

Big mistake.

I was tackled from behind and somehow landed on my back; the snow was icy, but soft. He straddled my hips, and then reached down for more snow. He stuffed handfuls under the hem of my shirt, over my stomach.

The warmth of the fabric made it melt quickly, so I soon had a lot of icy water on me. Even so, I was laughing and gigging. I heard him laughing, too, really and truly _laughing. _I paused and stared in awe, committing his laugh to memory.

It was then that I realized that all around us was silence. I turned my head to the side and saw that most everyone was staring at us, some with snowballs still in their hands. Mirabelle looked amazed; Julia looked awed. Everyone looked at us like something extraordinary had happened.

But then again, I'm pretty sure it was because no one had ever heard Vaughn _laugh_ like this before.

He finally seemed to notice the silence, too, and looked up. He blushed when he saw all the staring eyes. He quickly got to his feet, brushing on the snow from his jeans. "

What are you all looking at?" He grumbled in irritation.

Julia broke out into a huge smile. "You're turning him into a human being, Chelsea," she rejoiced.

A few people chuckled. Someone threw a snowball then, though, and the fight resumed, as if nothing had happened. Vaughn still looked annoyed, and it was enough that no one dared to chuck a snowball at him. I got up and took his hand.

"Want to go back to my place? We have dinner plans, remember?" I asked.

Well, lunch plans, now.

He nodded. "Yeah, let's go."

He pulled me over to the bridge. I glanced over my shoulder one more time, and saw Sabrina staring wistfully after us.

**A/N: This story got 1500 hits last month. That's a lot, to me. So happy 3 **


	16. Blizzard

**Disclaimer: I do not own HM **

_16: Blizzard_

It became apparent to me that I didn't have any real food in my farmhouse as soon as I opened the little fridge. I informed him of this grudgingly.

"It's probably for the best; I'm a terrible cook anyway. Pierre would be appalled," I sighed.

One silver brow raised in question. "Who?"

"The little blonde man who just moved here – he's a chef," I explained.

"Oh." Vaughn paused. "When I first looked at him, I thought he was about Charlie's age."

I chuckled. "Yeah, I know. Natalie might start dating him, I think. It's really creepy."

He nodded in agreement. "We could go the Café or the Diner," I realized, "They were just built."

Vaughn shrugged. "If you want to."

It was around noon now, and it seemed to me that the temperature was dropping rapidly, more so than it usually did. The wind stung viciously and shivered in my light jacket on the walk back to East Town.

"Why didn't you wear that heavy coat?" Vaughn asked.

I shrugged. He sighed and started walking faster.

We went into the Diner and sat at a big, round table that would seat six. "Aren't these places usually closed on Festival days?" I suddenly recalled.

A tall man in his early forties walked over to us. "Generally," he answered, "But I supposed an exception can be made." He handed us two menus.

I smiled at his graciousness. "Thanks," I said.

He nodded and went back behind the long counter. Vaughn's eyes seemed to scan the menu once, and then he put it back on the table.

"You've already decided?" I asked, surprised.

He nodded. "Yeah. I'm getting porridge."

I snickered. "Porridge?" I repeated.

He made a face. "What's wrong with that?" He sounded offended.

I pursed my lips to keep from smiling again. "I don't know . . . I would have thought you'd like something more . . . masculine." That wasn't the right word.

"There's masculine food?" He asked.

"Oh, shut up. You know what I mean."

The waiter came then, so I picked the first thing I saw – grilled fish. The owner/waiter nodded approvingly. "A fine choice."

Vaughn asked for a glass of red wine before the owner walked away. I raised an eyebrow after the waiter had gone.

"Wine?"

"It's five o' clock somewhere," he mumbled.

"Maybe I'll get one, too," I said.

"You're not twenty one yet." He smirked.

"Humph," I sighed.

The food was brought to us quickly, and I noticed that he truly enjoyed the porridge very much. "Wine and porridge – odd combination," I said at one point.

"The best," he replied between mouthfuls. He insisted on paying the bill before we left despite my protests. It almost one thirty when we walked out of the Diner.

It was snowing lightly; I stuck out my tongue to catch the snowflakes. "What shall we do tomorrow?" I asked, assuming he wanted to spend that time with me.

"I'd like to look at the Forest after work, if you don't mind," he said.

"Oh yeah. Work." I sighed.

He smiled and wrapped his arms around me. "Yeah, work. You know, the reason I come here?"

Pain suddenly gripped my heart. I looked up at him sadly. "Yes. The only reason." I tried to pull free of his arms, but they only clutched me tighter.

I didn't want to look at him, knowing my expression would betray my pain. He waited until I looked at him to speak, though. He looked remorseful.

"No," he murmured, leaning his forehead against mine, "Not the only reason."

I wished he would say something more heartfelt, but Vaughn just wasn't like that. My heart went into a frenzy at our close proximity, as it always did.

"I . . . I like coming here, Chelsea. I miss you when I'm away," he murmured.

I was shocked he'd said more than the 'more than one reason' thing.

"I . . ." He trailed off, and there was conflict in his eyes. He seemed to dismiss whatever he'd been about to say. I was about to question him when he suddenly kissed me fiercely. I responded just as urgently, reaching up to toss his hat to ground before tangling my fingers in his hair. It was because of my . . . distraction, that I didn't hear the sound of footsteps approaching.

He didn't seem to, either. So we both jumped and broke away when we heard a quiet voice. "Um . . ." I looked over and saw Sabrina standing there, a blush on her cheeks and sadness in her eyes.

"Oh, hi, Sabrina," I said, blushing as she did, "What did you need?"

She fidgeted with a corner of her dress. "You left before I made the announcement at the Festival – Father and I would like a host a housewarming party next Wednesday. We'd like it very much if you'd both come," she said.

"We'll be there," Vaughn said.

I looked up at him, shocked that he had just accepted an invitation to a social gathering so easily. Sabrina seemed to perk up at his answer, and she smiled at him shyly before turning and walking away. I scowled, turning my head so he couldn't see.

"What's with you?" I grumbled.

"What?" He asked, sounded confused.

"I thought you hated social gatherings," I said.

"I thought you'd want to go. _You_ seem to like that sort of thing," he told me.

"We don't have to go if you don't want to," I murmured.

"I want to see the inside of that house. It's enormous," he admitted.

"Oh, so _that's _the real reason," I snickered. Then a thought occurred to me. "Weren't we going to celebrate the Starry Night Festival with Mirabelle and Julia next Wednesday?"

"Yeah," he remembered, "But we'll probably do it on Thursday now."

***

The rest of the day was wonderful. We explored the forest together, and he seemed very at peace with our surroundings. "Why?" I asked.

He shrugged. "It's so open here – not cramped like the city." He smiled slightly.

We ran into Witch Princess along the way. Her eyes scanned Vaughn appraisingly. He frowned in discomfort. "Is this the one you were telling me about earlier? This one and that other girl?"

"No!" I said, too quickly. My eyes flickered to his face.

He looked confused. "What were you telling her about me?"

"Nothing – I was talking about someone else," I lied.

Vaughn shrugged and started walking again, not bothering to say goodbye to the Witch. "I wish you hadn't said that," I whispered in her ear.

She smirked. "I do apologize," she said, amused.

I took him to the Harvest Goddess' pond after that. We didn't go into the church, but we stood in front of the pretty little pond. "The Harvest Goddess is said to reside here," I murmured to him.

He snorted. "If there really was a Harvest Goddess, life would be much easier."

I refrained from snickering. Just then, the familiar glittering green mist appeared, and out of it stepped the subject of our conversation. The Harvest Goddess smiled wryly. "I do what I can," she said, almost sadly.

I didn't answer, for I was the only one who could see. We left soon after that, going up the trail of the mountain. He grimaced when I pointed out the path that led to the mine. "Have you been up there yet?" He asked.

"Yes, once. I found a few gems, but nothing really valuable," I sighed, "But that's because I didn't go down far enough."

"I wish you wouldn't go up there at all – it's dangerous," he said.

"But it will help with money. And I need it now."

"Not that much," he insisted.

I remembered back to around the time when I'd first met Vaughn, and he'd told me that money was extremely important, that no one ever got anywhere without it. I'd been a little critical of the comment then. But it seemed now that there _were _things that were of more importance to him – like my safety. I smiled to myself and took his hand.

It was icy-cold at the top of the mountain, but we made it. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw movement. When I turned my head, a Harvest Sprite appeared, not El and not Lou. This one had deep purple clothes and an odd pointed hat.

"Congratulations on making it to the mountain top, Chelsea. I'm Jip, by the way."

I nodded once in his general direction. He smiled, and then disappeared. I shivered as an icy wind stung my face.

"Want to go back?" Vaughn asked.

"No," I murmured, "Not just yet."

The view of the ocean was breathtaking. I could stare at it for hours, if the weather was nicer. "I love this Island," I said softly, "I want so badly to revitalize it."

"You're doing good so far," he said approvingly, "This job takes a lot of hard work and determination. Some would have quit by now."

I smiled at him. "Thanks. When I'm not working, though, or talking to people, I'll admit that it gets a little boring."

He chuckled. "I'm sure."

"Except for Wednesdays and Thursdays, of course," I added, "They're always fun."

He smirked. "Oh? I'm rather fond of those days myself."

I laughed and kissed him.

***

I got home around five that night. Vaughn had admitted to me that he actually _did_ have some work to do on this particular day, so I'd grudgingly let him go. I had eaten at the Diner again, ordering candied yam. Not the most nutritious, but whatever.

I knew it was early in the evening, but I was tired from all the walking, especially from going up and down the mountain trail. I sleepily lay back in bed and closed my eyes, hoping I would not dream.

***

A loud knocking woke me. I sat up, disoriented, and looked at my alarm clock. It was ten at night. I figured it was Natalie; though I wasn't sure why she'd knock. I squinted in the dark over at my couch, but I couldn't make out a figure lying across it.

I got out of bed with a blanket around myself and opened the door. Taro stood with there a flashlight in his hand and dark circles under his eyes. "Evening, little missy," he said in a voice that was hoarser than normal.

"Are you alright?" I asked, concerned.

He waved at me in a dismissing gesture. "I'm healthy as a horse."

"Where were you at the Festival today?" I wondered aloud, forgetting to be annoyed at him for waking me up.

Taro rolled his eyes. "Felicia thinks my cold is back, but she's wrong. She made me stay behind and rest." He started coughing at the end of his sentence, leaning heavily on his gnarled old cane.

"If you're sick, what are you doing here at this hour? You _should_be resting."

I tried to get him to come inside and drink some water, but he refused. "No, I just came up here to tell you something. Like I said, I've been in bed all day so I haven't had the chance. But I came to say that there'll be a blizzard tomorrow – a real big one. You need to make any preparations?" He raised one eyebrow.

"No," I said, "I'm good."

I realized that this meant I wouldn't be able to spend today with Vaughn – but if there was a major storm, he wouldn't be able to leave until Friday morning . . .

"I ought to get back now," Taro said, "Don't go outside during the storm; snow'll be coming down so much you couldn't see something right in front of your nose."

I nodded seriously. "I'm sure I'll be fine. So will everyone else – Gannon builds strong houses."

Taro nodded and started walking back without a goodbye. I asked if I could walk him home, but he snapped that he was fine and could do it himself.

Stubborn old man.

I realized that the chickens should probably have more feed than usual, for tomorrow, so I went out to the coop and filled it up again. I sleepily stumbled back to my farmhouse, falling back to sleep very quickly.

***

My alarm clock went off at six as usual – I'd forgotten to turn it off. There was no reason to get up early if I couldn't leave the house. One glance out my window told me that Taro had been correct about the storm – the snow was coming down faster than I'd ever seen it, and I could see the trees whipping in the wind. I hoped I wouldn't get snowed in . . .

I got out of bed and made some coffee. It was leaning against the counter, sipping it, when something occurred to me. I looked up at the basket and blanket I'd fashioned into a bed for Woody; he was not there. I looked around my small house, panic rising up inside my chest. By the time I was through looking, my heart felt like it was in my throat.

I then remembered that yesterday I had let him out to roam around in the sun the previous day, and had forgotten to bring him back inside. I cursed myself with every foul word I knew and pulled on my hair hard enough to make tears come into my eyes.

I was such a moron.

I remembered to put extra feed in the feeders yesterday for the chickens yesterday – why couldn't I have remembered my dog as well? I pictured him stumbling around in the cold, the wind – perhaps he'd been buried already or froze to death.

I was temporarily paralyzed as I considered this very real possibility. The cup of coffee fell from my hands and shattered into pieces on the ground, but I barely heard it fall. I felt sick – my stomach twisted and heaved. I hurried to the window and looked outside.

The snow didn't _look_ very deep. Maybe the storm had started just a short time ago. Either way, I had to go out. There would be no way I could just sit here in my farmhouse, waiting for it to end, wondering if Woody lived or died.

I shuddered at the thought. I thought about Taro's warning as I pulled on Lanna's heavy coat. It was true – the snow was coming down so thickly I would have trouble seeing, or fall, or injure myself. But I had to try. I was convinced of it.

There was a blast of icy wind that hit my bare skin as soon as I pulled the door open, and I wanted very much to go back inside and escape it. But I couldn't. I stepped out into the storm and pulled the door shut behind me.

Even with this coat, I still shuddered violently and yanked the hood up over my head. I had to squint very hard to see where I was going. It was my intention to go up to my field and look for the little dog, but my vision was limited and somehow I ended up going south instead of north.

The wind was violent and unforgiving; I hadn't known wind could be so strong. There were times when I had to grip whatever was around or drop to my knees because it felt like the wind would simply pluck me off the ground and hurl me as far as it could.

A good portion of my energy was gone when I dropped to my knees again and held the coat around myself. I had to go back. There was simply nothing I could do. I wouldn't be able to find Woody in this wrenched storm.

Just being out here was draining me; if I continued to search, I would surely pass out, and who knows what would happen to me then. I squinted and could make out the shape of a building to my left.

Taro's house.

Almost blind, I started crawling to the door. But when I was a few feet away, looked to my right, away from the sudden gust of icy wind. And as I looked, still squinting, I saw something that made me freeze (no pun intended).

A little ways away, close to where I judged to be Mirabelle's Animal Shop, I saw a small speck of brown in all the white. It might have been my eyes playing tricks on me – I was so tired, it was possible I was delusional. But I had to look . . .

I fought my way over to the brown spot, crawling the whole way, my hands frozen and my body aching with the effort. My labors were rewarded – the brown lump was what I hoped it was. Woody was lying in the snow, unconscious.

I got on my knees and pulled him into my arms; he appeared to be breathing, I noticed with relief. The next vicious whip of snowy wind was strong enough to shove me backwards; I landed in the snow on my back.

I groaned and clutched Woody to my chest, breathing heavily. _Mirabelle's Shop, _I told myself in my mind. But even my mental voice was weak and exhausted. I knew that was where I had to go; I knew it wasn't far away. But it really wasn't so bad here. My eyes half-closed as I felt my consciousness slowly slipping away; I was too weak to fight it.

There was a fog in my brain, similar to one I'd felt waking up from the bad mushroom incident. My very last thought was to wrap Woody up inside my warm coat.

And then I closed my eyes, and passed out.

**A/N: Shortest chapter so far, but a lot happens. **


	17. Fake Starry Night

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harvest Moon. I'm sick of disclaimers, so this one is for the rest of the story. **

_16: Fake Starry Night _

Just like before, I was disoriented when I woke up, but the fog around my mind was not so hazy. I was conscious and coherent a lot faster than my mushroom episode. The very first thing I noticed was that I was sweating.

A lot.

My clothes were sticking to my body and I could feel a light sheen of it all over my skin. I felt gross. I could also feel layer upon layer of warmth on top of me; blankets? Groaning, I realized I'd have to open my eyes to look.

My head and body ached, but thankfully I wasn't nauseous. Very slowly, my eyes opened. I was right about the blankets; there were at least three thick quilts stacked on me; the very top one was a vibrant orange and yellow.

It hurt my eyes.

My neck muscles were straining with just the simple task of raising my head. I let it fall back on a pillow. I turned to the right and spied a simple nightstand with a black lamp and my bandana on top. I bit my lip as I looked around the room, realizing that it was vaguely familiar to me. But I couldn't put my finger on it . . .

I leaned my head back again and closed my eyes, scanning through the last memories I had before I passed out. I remembered fighting my way through the blizzard, through the blisteringly cold snow, ice and wind.

I remembered crawling on my hands and knees to Taro's house before spying the lump of brown amongst all the white. I recalled clutching the unconscious little dog to my chest, and being knocked over by an icy blast of wind.

I had closed my eyes, unable to move, though I'd known that refuge was only a little ways away . . . But I was safe.

I was alive.

No bones seemed to be broken, and I was thinking clearly. There were just the painful aches that intensified if I moved even a tiny bit. For a moment, I was in awe of that simple fact. Just before I'd passed out, I'd been sure that was it for me.

That the snow would bury me and I would suffocate, or something of the sort. For a short while I just lay there, incoherent with joy. That was when I noticed it. I couldn't believe I hadn't before. My head had turned a fraction to the left, and I froze.

There, just a few inches away, lay an unconscious Vaughn. He was on his side facing me, and now that I concentrated, I felt his body against my side. My cheeks burned when I realized our position; his arm was slung across my waist, too. His mouth was slightly open, his expression calm and peaceful in sleep. He was glorious.

Once my initial surprise and embarrassment faded away, and I was through ogling him, a deep sense of contentment came over me. It felt like I could stay here forever, forget about all my troubles and burdens; I could just lay like this forever, in Vaughn's arms, perfectly happy.

I didn't even question at first how I'd ended up here, in his room, after the storm. It was truly a miracle. I wanted to reach up and stroke his face, but I knew that would wake him up and the moment would be gone.

So I snuggled up against him, ignoring the aches and the pain, trying to be careful. I'm not really sure how long we were lying like that, but when he began stirring, I felt like it was too soon. He lifted his hand and rubbed at his eyes, yawning.

I stared openly. When his beautiful amethyst eyes finally focused on me, I couldn't stop my smile. "Hi" was my brilliant greeting.

For a split second he smiled back at me slightly. But then it fell away and was quickly replaced by an angry scowl. He sat up, and then climbed over me so as to be out of bed and standing next to the nightstand.

I was bewildered; what had I done wrong?

He was in the same clothes as usual, but they were wrinkled. He reached down and grabbed his hat off the foot of the bed; I hadn't noticed it there before. I wanted to sit up, so I tried. The pain wasn't exactly unbearable, but it was extremely uncomfortable. He noticed what I was trying to do.

He placed his hat on his head, and then walked back over to me and pushed my shoulders down. "Just lie down," he said firmly, his expression still irritated. His words were stiff and sharp.

A different kind of pain cut through me. "What? What's wrong?" I reached up and touched his arm.

The touch softened his expression a little, but not by much. When he spoke again, it was almost a snarl. "What the _hell_ were you doing wandering around in the middle of a blizzard with a dog?"

I flinched, still hurt. But then my temper flared and my eyes narrowed. "I was _looking_ for Woody," I almost yelled.

"What was _he _doing in the storm?" Vaughn demanded, gritting his teeth after he spoke.

I was even angrier now; he had no right to question me this way. Besides, if I told him the truth, I would have to say that I had stupidly forgotten to call Woody back into the house after Taro had predicted the storm. I would have to admit my awful mistake.

I knew how much he loved the animals he worked with; if I told him, would he be disgusted with me and never speak to me again? My throat tightened at the thought. My lips pursed, and I refused to speak.

Thankfully, I was saved. The door flew open, and there stood an annoyed-looking Julia. She glared at her cousin, raising one hand to jab her index finger at him.

"Don't you _dare_ yell at Chelsea after what she's been through! You're being horrid!" She stormed into the room and shoved him back, away from me.

"I'm _trying_ to get some answers," Vaughn spat.

"You're not going to get any by shouting at her," Julia snapped.

I was relieved for the interruption, but I didn't want them fighting this way. "It's alright, Julia," I said, trying to diffuse the tension.

"It's not alright, Chelsea. Especially after you just woke up." Julia said angrily. Her expression changed suddenly, became one of concern. "How are you feeling, by the way?"

"Achy. Everywhere. But other than that, I'm fine," I murmured. I began pushing the thick blankets off me. "I'm really sweaty, though."

"You're body temperature was way too low when we brought you in," Julia informed me, "We had to get it back up."

I nodded. "Thanks for that. But how did you see me? I couldn't see anything in all that snow." But then again, I wasn't all that coherent.

Vaughn spoke up; he didn't sound angry now. He almost sounded awed. "Julia looked out the window and saw you through the snow. I don't know how, but . . ."

"I have excellent eyesight," Julia said, "I thought it was you. Mom said I was crazy, but I was right. We tied a rope around Vaughn's waist. He went out and got you, and we pulled him back in, since we could barely see him."

"You saved my life," I said, gratitude evident in my voice.

"We both did," Julia replied, gesturing first to her cousin and then to herself. There was a short silence while I wrapped my head around that concept.

"Thank you," I finally said, "Thank you so much."

Julia reached down and took my hand. "You're welcome." She leaned down and said lowly in my ear, "Besides, if you died, who would date my anti-social cousin?"

An image of Sabrina flashed through my mind, and I shuddered. I hoped she didn't notice.

She flashed another irritated glance at Vaughn. "I'm going to leave now," Julia told him, "and you're going to be nice. If you're not, I'm kicking you out of this house."

Vaughn snorted. "Yeah, you try doing that. We're snowed in."

I was suddenly panicked. "Snowed in? But my chickens will go hungry," I said anxiously. But that reminded me. "Woody," I recalled, "What happened to Woody? Is he alright?"

"He woke up a few hours before you did. He's fine – Mirabelle gave him pet food and water," Vaughn told me.

I was relieved, but still worried about the chickens.

"They'll be fine," Julia assured me, "I'm sure they'll be stressed out for the next few days, but . . ." I groaned. She stroked my hair. "You don't need to think about it right now, though, alright? Just rest for now; Mom will get you something to eat. When we can get out of this house, we'll have a doctor look at you."

"I really can't afford a medical bill, Julia," I sighed, "I'll be just fine."

"You should have a doctor look at you, just to be safe," Vaughn said firmly.

I didn't want to argue; all the shouting had given me a killer headache. Julia left the room after casting her cousin one last warning glance. There was an awkward silence; I stubbornly refused to break it. Finally, he sighed and stood over me, raising a hand to place it on my burning cheek.

"Sorry I yelled," he apologized, "I'm just frustrated."

"Why?" I asked, "Why does it matter to you what I do?"

I knew that we'd been together lately. _Together, _as a couple. Kissing and hugging and holding hands. But a small, gnawing part of me wanted a declaration, a real, solid thing that would allow me to stop mentally cringing every time I saw Sabrina.

Though they had only just met, and he seemed to care for me, part of my mind couldn't help but conjure up pictures of the two of them together. After all, the Harvest Goddess wouldn't have bothered warning me about it if it wasn't something of real importance.

I wanted to puke as I thought about that. It wasn't only because of Sabrina that I wanted this, though; part of it was just because I really, really wanted him to say it. And I would be awfully hurt if he didn't.

His eyes tightened at my words, and abruptly he looked almost exasperated. "I thought I'd made my feelings clear by now," Vaughn muttered, more to himself than to me, "I'm not good with . . . this kind of thing."

"I know," I sighed, "But I wish you would try."

"I _have_ been trying. I've been trying to show you for a while now. You know that I care for you," he said.

This would have been sweet if his face hadn't been devoid of emotion.

"It wouldn't kill you to _say_ it," I mumbled.

He winced. "I just did."

"I care about you, too," I said, "And I want to be with you. A lot of people were . . . . bothering me about it when you were gone. But I told them that nothing was official."

"Why?"

I was pleased to see that he was truly puzzled. "I didn't . . . think you'd want people to know," I explained.

"I don't care what anyone thinks," he said arrogantly. He paused, and then added, "Except you."

"And maybe Denny," I chuckled.

Vaughn half-smiled. "Yeah. And Denny. He's cool."

"So . . ." I trailed off. Like I'd said to Natalie before, coming right out and asking him if he was my boyfriend seemed both childish and immature. "Are we . . . ?"

He leaned down and kissed me softly. "Yes."

The word was like music to my ears. I was overcome by joy for a second; I tangled my fingers in his hair and kissed him roughly. He responded, and we were both weren't paying attention to our surroundings, so I was very surprised when I heard someone clear their throat. Vaughn jerked back, and blushed when he saw his Aunt standing there, a tray in her hands with a bowl of something steaming on top.

"I don't mean to interrupt," Mirabelle muttered, walking over to me, "But you should eat something."

I blushed furiously and didn't make eye contact with her. I shoved the blankets off me completely (my arms ached with the movement), and Mirabelle put the tray in my lap. It was a big bowl of tomato soup. I picked up the spoon and smiled.

"Thanks, Mirabelle. I appreciate everything you've done for me," I murmured.

"Vaughn and Julia were the ones who saved you," Mirabelle said honestly, "If I'd had my way, they would never have gone outside to begin with. I thought Julia was seeing things."

She laughed softly to herself, and then she was serious again. "I know someone named Dr. Trent whom I could probably contact soon. I'm sure he'd come out to look at you; he's a compassionate man."

"I don't need it, Mirabelle. I don't have the money," I mumbled.

"If there's nothing wrong, he won't charge you. And the owner of the Original Inn won't charge the doctor for the room – he's fond of you," Mirabelle told me.

"Really?" I asked, surprised.

"He admires your determination," I heard Vaughn say, "Like I do."

I smiled at him affectionately. Mirabelle smiled broadly and then left the room.

"You like my determination, huh?" I asked, beginning to eat the soup.

"Yes. Not everyone can rebuild a civilization from scratch while attempting to start a farm and a life of their own. That's one of the reasons I liked you to begin with; you're independence," Vaughn said, his voice quiet. He sat down at the foot of the bed.

"Yeah, well, you're anti-socialism was kind of hot, too," I snickered.

He rolled his eyes and mumbled something unintelligible. He let me finish my soup, but his expression was troubled. When I was done, he drew in a deep breath.

"So are you going to tell me what you were doing in the middle of a storm?" He asked.

I avoided his eyes. "I don't want to," I mumbled honestly, "I think you'll be angry."

"That doesn't matter," he said.

"It does," I argued.

"Please tell me," he pressed.

I sighed, and gave up. "I forgot to bring Woody back into the house on night before the blizzard, even after Taro warned me. I didn't remember again until after I woke up in the morning, when the storm had already started. I wasn't going to let him freeze, so I went out looking for him. I found him, but by then, my energy was pretty much gone," I explained sadly.

"That was foolish of you," he said, his tone edging on anger.

"What? Forgetting to bring the dog into the house?" I asked.

"Well, yeah, that was stupid too. But it was even dumber to go out into the storm and look for him."

I was shocked; I hadn't expected him to say that. "I wasn't going to let him freeze to death," I almost snapped.

"You could have _died_," he growled, "Over a _dog._"

I blinked at him, totally confused. "You're not taking this how I pictured at all."

"What do you mean?" Vaughn asked irritably.

"I thought you'd be pissed at me for forgetting to bring the dog in, not for going out into the storm," I said.

His eyes narrowed. "_You_ are much more important than any damned dog ever will be; or any other animal for that matter," he said.

"I thought you loved animals," I whispered.

"I do. But I don't want you getting killed over one. Promise me you'll never do something like this again." His tone was demanding.

"I promise," I sighed.

There was a brief period of silence while he simmered down. "So you were really worried, huh?" I finally asked.

He sighed. "Thought I would have a heart attack. You looked so…deathly." He shuddered, almost violently.

"I'm sorry I scared you," I murmured.

He shrugged. "Just don't do it again." He got up and adjusted his hat. "You should probably go back to sleep." He began pulling the blankets back over me.

"I just need one – they're really heavy." I pushed two of them off me. He leaned down to kiss me once, and then he started walking away.

"Wait," I called.

Vaughn turned, curious. I bit my lip. "Do you have any…work to do?" I asked.

"Yeah," he grunted, "Quite a bit."

"Oh," I said, disappointed.

He lingered in the doorway. "Why?"

"I wanted you to take a nap with me," I confessed.

He blinked and stared for a minute, blushing slightly. "You don't have to," I mumbled. "Well . . ."

It was funny to watch him search for words. "I'm sure Mirabelle would understand . . . if I'm only here for a little while." He took off the hat and put it on the nightstand, right next to my bandana.

I scooted over, against the wall, as he got in. He lay on his side, facing me. He held me in his arms, the way he had this morning, before all the fighting broke out.

The same feeling of contentment came over me, and I fell asleep easily, loving the feel of his body against mine and his peaceful expression in sleep.

I gave into unconsciousness, but unfortunately I was harassed by a short dream.

***

_The white blankness was almost familiar to me now. I was unsurprised when the glittering green mist appeared. _

_The Harvest Goddess looked the same as ever, though her expression was concerned. "I heard about what happened, Chelsea. I'm very glad you are alright," she said, taking my hand in both of hers. _

"_It was a stupid mistake. Vaughn and Julia saved me," I murmured. _

"_Yes, I know," she murmured. _

"_Of course you do," I sighed. I glanced up at her nervously. "I don't suppose you'd tell me about the future now, would you?" _

_She must know what I was talking about. "Nope," she said, "But . . . I can see that he loves you, too. You're future is almost secure. Really, there's just the one issue to worry about, with Sabrina." _

"_And you won't tell me what the issue is, will you?" I grumbled. _

"_No," she admitted. _

"_Do I still need to worry, though?" I probed. _

_The Harvest Goddess shrugged and didn't reply. I groaned and pulled my hand out of hers. "I know this must be frustrating for you, Chelsea. But whatever happens, it will all be for the best," The Harvest Goddess murmured. _

"_So if Vaughn marries Sabrina it will be 'best'?" I snapped, cringing at the thought. _

_The Harvest Goddess fidgeted nervously. "Perhaps it's best I go now, Chelsea," she said finally. _

"_But wait," I said, remembering something, "You said that he _loves_ . . . ?" My heart inflated and blocked my throat. _

"_I have to go," said the Harvest Goddess. _

_She always left right when I was starting to get answers. I grabbed her arm as her shape began to waver. "Please," I begged, "please." _

"_He does love you," she confessed, "But he doesn't realize it just yet." _

_She disappeared then, without warning "Still be aware of the girl," I heard her voice murmur. _

"_And remember, the future is always subject to change." _

***

The clock on the wall informed me that it was late in the afternoon when woke up, frustrated by my dream. I was as achy as before; moving didn't hurt so much, I noticed with relief. The last thing I wanted to think about right now was Sabrina, not after the wonderful morning I'd had. Vaughn wasn't in the room with me, I noted sadly.

Probably working on something. I slowly got up out of bed, swaying for a minute on my feet. But I was determined to walk it off, so I made my way into the hallway. The door of Julia's bedroom stood open, and I saw her going through some kind of box, her back to me.

She was humming quietly to herself, a song I didn't recognize. I went out into the Main Room; I spied Mirabelle moving around in the kitchen. Just then, the door of the Animal Room opened, and Vaughn came out.

He walked over to me and took my hand. "What are you doing up?"

I shrugged. "It's boring there, all by myself. What have you been up to?"

"Taking care of the animals. And doing some very boring paperwork," he sighed.

Mirabelle called us all into the kitchen then, and the three of us sat at the table while she prepared something that smelled divine in a large pot. "Spaghetti," Julia said greedily as she came into the kitchen.

It was quiet for a while as Mirabelle worked; she denied Julia's offer of help. When the stove was switched off and the plates were out, Mirabelle turned to us and smiled. "I know it's the wrong date and everything, but I thought tonight would be a good time to celebrate the Starry Night Festival – see how pretty the sky is?" She gestured out the window.

You couldn't see out the bottom of it because it was obscured by the entrapping snow, but when Vaughn, Julia and I peered up at the sky, we saw that the sky held thousands of twinkling, beautiful stars.

"It's so pretty," Julia breathed, "I wish Elliot were here." She sighed wistfully.

I squeezed her hand comfortingly. "It's the perfect time, Mirabelle," I said as we all sat down to eat. It was delicious, as I'd thought.

I complimented Mirabelle on it, and she smiled and thanked me. When it was over, all three of them insisted that I go back to Vaughn's room to lie down. "I'm alright," I muttered, ignoring the painful headache that told me otherwise.

"Go on now," Julia insisted, "Vaughn will go with you. Mom and I will clean up."

Back in his room, I lay on the bed again, not really tired. "You don't like the festivals, do you?" I asked him abruptly.

He blinked and then smirked. "No, I don't. I don't like social gatherings in general, though."

"Why?" I whispered.

He looked uncomfortable, not meeting my eyes. "I don't like talking about it . . . Let's just say I haven't had the easiest life," he muttered.

"I didn't think so," I sighed, "But if you ever want to . . . tell me about, I'll listen."

"I know you will. But I just . . . not now."

I hoped he realized that I'd want to hear it in the future; I hoped he would _want_ to tell me. But I didn't want to press. He would talk about it when he wanted to. It was about eight in the evening now, and he insisted I go to sleep.

I sighed. "Only if you do, too," I said firmly.

He pulled off the hat and his belt. I looked away, trying not to ogle like this morning when he took his shirt off. But I couldn't help but look just before he pulled the blanket over us both; I got a fuzzy feeling all over. He pulled me against him like before, and I sighed happily.

"What do you want to do next Wednesday?" I murmured in the dark.

"We're going to Regis's and Sabrina's housewarming party, remember?" he reminded me.

I stiffened before I could stop myself. "Oh."

"What's wrong?" He asked, "You get weird every time I mention them."

I couldn't tell him. Of course not.

He didn't even think the Harvest Goddess was real.

"I think that . . . she has a thing for you," I mumbled.

"Sabrina?" He sounded surprised.

I nodded. It was silent for a few seconds, my stomach assuredly filling with butterflies.

"I don't think so," he finally said.

"She does. I can tell," I grumbled jealously.

He kissed the top of my head. "You don't have to worry. I love you."

I froze.

Had I just imagined it? Had I been going so completely crazy that something in my mind had just snapped and I was mentally insane? I felt him freeze, as if he himself was only just realizing what he had said.

He sat up and turned on the light. His expression was nervous. "I – I didn't mean that," he said, "It just slipped out. I meant to say . . ." He trailed off, no doubt seeing the pain that was twisting my expression.

I tried to wipe it away. "I'm sure." My voice was sharper than I'd meant it to be. I pulled the blanket over me tighter and shut my eyes.

"Chelsea . . ." There was conflict in his voice, but I didn't want to hear it. I didn't want to hear him take back the beautiful words he'd 'accidentally' said.

I felt his hands on my face, so I had to open my eyes. "Yes?"

"I . . . I . . ." He was struggling with words again. "I'm sorry. All of this is so new to me, and I don't . . ."

I remembered my previous dream with the Harvest Goddess.

"_He does love you," she confessed, "But he doesn't realize it just yet." _

Well, that was just fine. I could accept that. I didn't need to feel the horrid pang of rejection in my chest. I didn't need to have tears in my eyes. It was a stupid reaction. I had to remember that the only people he seemed to care for were his Aunt and his cousin; it must be odd for him to begin to love someone else.

But it was odd for me, too. This hadn't ever happened to me before; I was only twenty! It _had_ happened, though, and it frustrated me that I could realize that I loved him and he could not realize the same thing. Why didn't he let himself?

Slowly, I pushed the heavy blanket off myself and sat up next to him. Even if he didn't say it back just yet, I figured he had a right to know how I felt. I looked him straight in the eye, and my voice didn't waver when I spoke.

"I know that _I _love you, Vaughn. I know it."

His expression became a little panicky, and there was discomfort in his eyes.

I added quickly, "But it's okay if you don't. I just . . . thought you should know." I pushed aside my hurt feelings. They didn't matter right now.

"I'm . . . sorry, Chelsea. I'm just . . . confused right now," he muttered, fidgeting with the blanket.

"That's fine," I assured him, "I don't want you to say anything you don't mean." I reached over him and switched the light off. I slid back under the blanket and hoped he would to the same.

The only downside to this whole thing was that it might be a bit awkward between the two of us now. I hoped it wouldn't be like that; I meant every word I said. I could wait. He just sat there for a few minutes, probably consumed with his thoughts.

But finally, I heard him sigh, and then he slid back under the blanket and turned over to hold me in his arms again.

"Happy fake Starry Night," he whispered in my ear. I half-smiled and then kissed him.

**A/N: As per usual, the Harvest Goddess is right; he **_**does **_**love her. But he is stubborn and blind. :(**


	18. Jealousy

_17: Jealousy _

Vaughn left early the next morning; it was Friday, after all, and being snowed in had kept him overnight. We were able to get the doors opened in the morning; the sun was shining brilliantly in the sky and a lot of the snow had melted; spring would soon be here. The last of winter's storms had come and gone.

Thankfully, when I said goodbye to him that morning after a very long kiss, it didn't seem awkward like I'd feared; if anything it was like last night's conversation had never occurred; he acted the same as usual.

Maybe he had just accepted the fact that I loved him and would wait until he could sort out his feelings for me. I was impatient; I wanted him to know it already. But this wasn't the kind of thing I could push; it wasn't something I _should_ push.

I carried Woody in my arms as I walked back to my farmhouse from the beach, smiling slightly the whole way. I was a very lucky person. Back in the city, life was horrible for me; I lived and worked a place I hated, and I had no true friends.

Here, the difference was so noticeable it was almost staggering.

Here, I was doing something I truly wanted to, and everyone on this Island was my friend, good ones at that. And I had Vaughn, too; I'd never even come close to romantic love in the city. It seemed to me that maybe I should be amazed that I'd fallen in love with him.

But it seemed only natural now, something that would happen no matter what. There was simply no other way. I never believed in silly things like destiny, but perhaps my being washed up on this once-desolate island _was_ destiny.

I snapped out of my cheesy daze when I set Woody down next to the field and went into the chicken coop. Both of them were absolutely fine, and they ran like mad to the feeders when I filled them up.

Nugget got a little violent with the younger one; he'd finished his piece of bird feed and hobbled over to start eating the chick's.

"Hey now," I murmured, picking up the almost-adult Nugget.

I realized that my new little chicken had no name. It was just a small ball of chirping yellow fuzz, pecking at its feed. "Fuzz," I decided, "I'll call you Fuzz. Vaughn can't make fun of that name." I turned and walked out of the coop. I decided then to go and see Natalie; I was eager to tell her everything. I needed to vent.

But when I got to Taro's house, the old man said, "She's over at Pierre's. She got snowed in with him yesterday. Haven't seen her since." He sighed.

"Oh. Well, bye now," I mumbled, turning to leave.

"How's your farm? You get snowed in, too?" Taro asked.

I bit my lip. "Yes . . ." I wasn't in the mood to tell him. Natalie could, if she wanted to. I hurried off to Pierre's house.

The little man opened the door and smiled widely at me. The smell of cooking food breezed out of his house. Did he never stop cooking? "Ah, Chelsea, you're just in time to join Natalie and me in an exquisite breakfast," Pierre said brightly, gesturing for me to come in.

Natalie was sitting at the table; the plates of food were already set out, and the scent was mouthwatering. She seemed a little annoyed with me all through the meal, but I didn't want to ask her about it with Pierre around.

The food was divine – Pierre really knew how to cook well. I complimented him nicely, and he blushed and thanked me. Natalie and I left soon afterwards, walking back into the Main part of town. Her expression was sour.

"What's wrong?" I finally asked.

"You ruined my romantic breakfast. I was snowed in with Pierre last night, and we got to talking . . . I really like him. Maybe as much as you like your cowboy," she told me bluntly.

"I doubt that." I smirked.

"Perhaps you just like him because he's the only guy on the Island who isn't your brother or interested in someone else."

Natalie shook her head stubbornly. "No, that's not it. He's really sweet, and he's fun to talk to. I almost kissed him last night, but I lost my nerve at the last minute."

"You?" I asked in disbelief, "_Natalie_ lost her nerve?"

She shrugged and kicked a rock. "Yeah, hard to believe, I know. But I was totally going to go for it this morning, and then you . . ." She grimaced.

"Sorry, Nat," I said, "I didn't know."

"Of course you didn't. I'll get around to it in the future," she said.

"I told you that you'd find a guy. I just didn't expect him to be twelve and obsessed with food," I snickered.

She slapped my arm roughly. "He _doesn't_ look _that_ young, and, yeah, he's really into food, but that's only because it's his passion. I wish I had something I loved so much." Natalie's tone was admiring.

"You probably do – you just haven't found it yet. Mine is farming. But you'll notice I don't talk about all day, every day, like _some _people," I said sarcastically.

Natalie rolled her eyes. "At least my boyfriend _talks_. Yours is like a statue."

"Boyfriend?" I raised one eyebrow.

"He will be, eventually," Natalie insisted, "No one can resist me."

I laughed loudly. We were close to her house now, but I didn't want our talk to end, so I steered us in the direction of the beach.

"What about you?" Nat said, "I'll bet you were bored, snowed in your farmhouse all by yourself."

"I wasn't, actually," I told her.

I related everything; my going out to find Woody, and being rescued by Vaughn and Julia. Natalie interrupted after I told about the blizzard. "Chelsea, you could have _died_," she snapped.

"I know. It was stupid. I just . . . didn't want Woody to freeze."

"You're more important than a dog," she said angrily.

I smiled slightly, remembering Vaughn's earlier words. "_Anyway_," I continued. I told her that Mirabelle, Vaughn, Julia and I had celebrated the Starry Night Festival a bit early, and then I told about how I'd said I loved him.

She blinked at me and there was long silence. "You . . ." She trailed off. "I knew you liked him and everything, and I knew that you're together now, but I didn't think . . ."

I sighed. "I didn't, either. But I'm sure of it. I love him." I smiled to myself, feeling the rightness of the words.

"Huh. What did he say?"

My smile faded. She noticed. "He didn't say it back?" She asked sympathetically.

"No," I sighed, "He basically said he was confused."

"Well, I hope you don't get hurt," she said.

"I won't," I assured her, "He just needs time. He hasn't had the best life. I'm sure he'll realize it soon enough."

"What makes you so sure?" She asked curiously.

I bit my lip. I couldn't tell Natalie about the Harvest Goddess dreams; what if she thought I was crazy? "I just know," I lied, looking away so she couldn't see my expression.

Natalie stared straight ahead, her lips pursed. "I hope you're right."

***

The spent the rest of the next day fishing with Denny. He told jokes as usual, and he had me laughing so hard that tears came into my eyes. I caught several large fish, much to my surprise.

"Thanks for teaching me this stuff, Den. I used to suck at it, but it think I'm doing better."

"Anytime, Chelsea," he said, grunting as he reeled in a very big fish.

Lanna walked up to us sometime in the late afternoon, her lips pursed and her brown eyes calculating. She wedged herself in between Denny and me and smiled at him sweetly. "Hi," she said, kissing his cheek.

Denny blushed. "Hey, Lanna."

"Denny was just showing me some more fishing tips," I said to after she hadn't acknowledged me.

"Oh?" She asked, "That's nice. But I could show you a lot of things, too, Chelsea. You don't have to be bothering Denny all the time." Her tone was a little sharp.

I bristled. "He doesn't seem to mind," I replied harshly.

Denny let his line go slack, and the fish got away. "It's alright, Lanna, I don't mind teaching Chelsea a few things. She's fun to hang out with."

"I see," the former pop star muttered. She put her arm through his. "Why don't we go have dinner together at the Diner? We can ask the owner to grill some fish for us."

Denny looked at me. "Do you mind, Chelsea? We can keep fishing after I'm done."

Lanna looked irritated.

"No, it's alright, Denny. I wanted to look around the mine today, anyway," I lied.

"It's pretty dangerous," Lanna said, a bit of concern in her voice now.

"Yeah, I know. I'll be fine," I said.

"It's getting kind of late, Chelsea. Why don't you go tomorrow?" Denny looked anxious.

I smiled at him. Aside from Natalie, Denny was my best friend on the Island. Lanna didn't seem to like it. It seemed obvious to me that I didn't like Denny romantically, but I had to remind myself that Lanna didn't _know_ Vaughn and I were together.

She'd only heard rumors, which might or might not be true. I'd have to have a few words with her later. I agreed to steer clear of the mine and went to ship my fish. I was halfway to Mirabelle's before I realized she was closed on Saturdays. I turned and went back to my farmhouse.

***

The rest of the week went by painfully slowly. What made it even worse was knowing that, even though I would see him Wednesday, I would still have to go to Regis's and Sabrina's housewarming party. I didn't see Sabrina around town much at all; she rarely went out. I saw her once at the beach one evening, gazing out at the ocean, but I avoided her like the plague.

A part of me didn't like doing it; my first impression of her was probably right; she was probably a lovely person and it was wrong of me to picture her as some kind of horrible viper. But it was difficult for me not to.

Since I was so bored, I threw myself into my word. I fished and mined like there was no tomorrow, and I only fell through one pitfall. Thankfully, I only fell one floor and didn't hurt anything. I was even more careful in the mine after that; I made it to floor 30.

The rocks seemed to get harder and harder as I went down, though; Gannon had once said that it was possible to upgrade tools by attaching powerful balls called Wonderfuls to them. I had no idea how to do it, and neither did Gannon, but he'd said Charlie knew how.

I remembered Charlie saying he could also make accessories, with some kind of stone that started with an 'o'. I didn't know if I found any in the mine; I shipped anything I got because I needed the money.

I was so utterly bored on Monday that I impulsively went and asked Gannon to build me a barn. He shrugged and accepted the money I offered. I'd gotten a lot of profits from the fish and the jewels, so I could afford it. He said gruffly that it'd be done by tomorrow, and then he lumbered off to my land to begin working.

When I woke up on Tuesday, after I'd fed Woody and had my coffee, Gannon walked in to tell me the job was done. "Taro's waiting for you outside the doors – he's got a surprise for you." On that note, he left. I went outside and found Taro there, smiling widely.

"Come on inside," he said.

When we went in, I saw a fat, happy calf, wondering around the barn and mooing loudly. I smiled at the old man. "I wish you'd quit buying me animals."

He made a face. "Kids these days . . . can't be thankful for any dang gift," he grumbled.

I laughed. "I do appreciate it, Taro. Thank you. I think I'll call her Bessie."

He snorted. "Whatever you want, I guess. There's some fodder in the feed dispenser for you. When she's all grown up, you milk her once a day – Mirabelle will sell you the tool. You'll also need to get a brush – quite soon. Brushing will help build a friendship with the animal."

I nodded. "I'll get one today."

Taro nodded and left soon afterward.

I put fodder in the feeder and pet Bessie. "Hey, girl, I'm Chelsea. I'll take care of you," I cooed to her. She seemed happy enough. I went and bought a brush from Mirabelle.

"Are you going to Sabrina's party tomorrow?" Julia asked me as I was about to leave.

"Yes," I said, my tone kind of sharp.

"With my cousin?" she asked.

"Yes." Julia smiled to herself, and went about her business.

When I outside the Shop, I was surprised to find Sabrina there, clutching a white envelope in her hands. "Good morning, Chelsea. How are you?" She asked pleasantly.

"Fine, thank you," I said.

She gave me the envelope. "I know I already invited you to the party and everything, but Father thinks that it's proper to send out invitations. Everyone else has already gotten theirs – I haven't been able to catch you lately, what with all the work you've been doing."

"Yes, I have been busy," I said, putting the envelope in the pocket of my jacket.

Sabrina looked at the ground when she spoke again. "Is, um, Vaughn coming with you?" she asked.

"Yes," I said, a bit possessively.

She glanced up at me. I realized that her eyes, like Vaughn's, were also a strange shade of purple, only hers were like violets rather than amethyst. "I'm not doing anything this afternoon – I have the day off. Initially it was to make last minute decisions for the party, but that's all done now. Would you like to come over for tea?"

I was surprised by the invitation, and though I felt uncomfortable saying yes, I did. Even with the problems she would surely present me, I still liked her, as I had initially. We walked to her huge mansion together.

"What exactly do you do?" I asked.

"I work for my father's company. I do a lot of things, like creating documents and calculating transactions," she said timidly.

"Wow," I breathed, "Sounds fancy."

She shrugged. Her house was even grander inside than out. There were vases of roses everywhere, and numerous doors that led to a ton of rooms. There were fine paintings and intricate wallpaper, and everything was high-tech and respectable.

"You're house is amazing," I murmured without thinking.

Sabrina shrugged. "It's alright. Most of the decorations are in the ballroom, where the party will be hosted." She led me upstairs, where she made tea in the kitchen. The fancy appliances there could have rivaled Pierre's kitchen.

She led me to the dining area and sat down next to me. "I'm nervous about the party tomorrow," she confessed, "I'm not good with social gatherings. But Father insisted, so . . ."

"Where is Regis, anyway?" I asked, refusing to think that Sabrina and Vaughn were similar in any way, though it was quite obvious.

"He's in his office," Sabrina replied, sipping her tea.

"You'll have fun, I'm sure. What exactly are we going to do?" I asked.

She shrugged. "Dinner will be served, and maybe some dancing. We'll probably just hang around and talk."

Dancing with Vaughn might be nice. I tried not to lose myself in a fantasy about it.

"The problem is," she sighed, "I really don't have anyone to dance _with. _I didn't really want to turn this party into a couples thing, but . . ."

"Julia will go with Elliot, Denny will go with Lanna, Natalie will go with Pierre, and I will go with Vaughn," I said, emphasizing the last part a bit too much.

She sighed and sipped again. "I don't mean to pry, but . . . um . . ." She trailed off, blushing a bright red and averting her eyes.

"Yes?" I pressed.

"Is he your boyfriend? Vaughn?" Sabrina asked. "

Yes," I said without hesitation, "Why?"

"Oh, no reason." She refused to look at me, and there was sadness in her voice.

I left her house quickly after that, frowning as I walked back to the farmhouse. Why, I wondered, out of the other three guys on this Island, did she have to like him? Why not Elliot, why not Denny, why not Pierre . . . ?

Fear rose up inside me. They were both so alike. Quiet, reserved, busy . . . I pushed the fear away. He loved me. He just didn't know it. The Harvest Goddess doesn't lie. And besides, I shouldn't be going off what she says anyway.

I sat on my bed and ripped open the envelope. The handwriting was smooth and elegant:

_You are cordially invited to a housewarming party for Regis and Sabrina. Please dress formally. _

It gave the date and time to arrive – noon – and that was it. Formally? I didn't have any dresses. Julia might . . . I went down to the Animal Shop and asked her.

"Of course I do," she said, "I have a lot. Come on." She led me to her room and pulled the closet open. It was full of numerous dresses, some long, some short, some sparkly, some plain. "I lent one to Natalie earlier today," she informed me.

"Natalie? Really?" I asked.

"Yes. She wanted something to impress that chef guy. Are they dating now?" Julia asked curiously as she pawed through the clothes.

"Not yet. But I think they'll start soon," I said.

"It didn't take them long," she laughed. She glanced over at me, and then at the closet. Finally, she pulled out a simple black dress that ended at my knees. The sleeves were long and loose; the very ends curled outward elegantly.

Thankfully, the neckline was just below my collarbone. "You'll look good in that," Julia told me, "My cousin won't know what hit him."

I smiled.

She gave me some matching jewelry, too; a pair of dangly black earrings. "You could use a bit of makeup, too," she muttered to herself.

"No makeup for me, Julia," I laughed, "I'm fine."

"I won't cake it on, Chelsea – you won't even know you're wearing it."

I shook my head, and she sighed. I left soon afterwards, after purchasing more chicken feed.

***

I was up at five the next morning, hurrying through my chores. I got done when it was almost six, and I went back into my farmhouse to throw down some coffee and let Woody run around in the sun. But when I opened the door to go meet Vaughn's boat, Julia stood there, smiling mischievously at me.

"What are you doing here?" I asked, trying not to sound rude.

"I'm going to make you all pretty before the party. I'll have Vaughn come get you at eleven thirty," she said.

"Julia," I complained, agitated. "I'm doing it for Natalie, too – I'm sure Lanna can manage on her own."

She rolled her eyes. "Can't I at least say hi to him?" I groaned.

"Nope. I want the full impact when he sees you," she said.

I was forced against my will to sit in one of my small wooden chairs while she tortured me. She applied foundation, powder, mascara, and eye shadow. "Julia," I whined as she pulled out the lip gloss, "I thought you said you wouldn't cake it on."

"I'm not," she insisted, "You'd feel like you were wearing a mask if I put a lot on. Now shut up while I put on this lip gloss."

I did as she asked. She did my hair, too, plugging in a curling iron she bought. My hair was bouncy and curly when she was done. She would my hair up in a bun and let a single strand hang next to my face.

When she was done, it was almost seven. "I don't have to be at the party until noon," I sighed.

She shrugged. "I know, but I had to get here before you left to meet up with Vaughn. I knew you would."

"I miss him," I complained.

She smiled, and then left to go find Natalie, after making me promise to stick around here until eleven thirty. It was awful to lie around my house for all those hours, but I managed, daydreaming most of the time.

At around ten thirty, I pulled the black dress on and the matching heels and earrings. I hadn't been dressed up in quite a long time – it actually felt nice. I looked at myself in the mirror and was surprised to see that I was actually quite pretty.

Smiling I sat down and waited. Finally_, finally _it was eleven thirty and there were three loud knocks on my doors. I almost flew to it.

My heart fluttered and inflated when I saw him. He wore a black tuxedo, and his hair was combed and shiny in the sun. He was breathtaking. He didn't notice my ogling, though, because he seemed to be doing ogling of his own.

"Wow," he breathed, his eyes moving up and down my body. "You look . . . amazing."

"You're not bad yourself." I smiled at him lovingly.

He moved to wrap his arms around me. "I don't usually notice time passing . . . but this last week has been awfully long," he whispered in my ear, kissing my temple.

I smiled. "I'm glad it wasn't just me."

He rolled his eyes before he kissed me. I was very, _very_ surprised when his tongue pushed into my mouth. I clutched him tighter. We were both breathing heavily when he pulled away. "We should go," he said, his eyes wistful.

I agreed and we started walking, hand in hand. The silence wasn't uncomfortable; it was natural, easy. Our hands swung in the air. Nobody was around; perhaps they were already there. He hesitated outside the door, frowning.

"It'll be fine," I assured him, "We can leave early, if you want."

He nodded once and we went inside. Some sort of bell went off when we opened the door, and Sabrina hurried down the hall to meet us. Her dress was long and purple, matching the color of her eyes perfectly.

She also had makeup on, and jewelry, expensive gems, probably. "Good afternoon," she said, "Follow me." She started leading us to the ballroom. I noticed her glancing inconspicuously over her shoulder once in a while, staring at Vaughn appreciatively.

I bit the inside of my cheek until I tasted the blood.

The ballroom was truly incredible; the decorations and platters looked like they were made for royalty. The room was huge and the ceiling was extremely high; but when I looked up, the whole ceiling was painted with pictured of little angels flying around in the clouds, some with harps in their hands.

"Holy . . ." Vaughn trailed off, looking around.

"Do you like it?" Sabrina asked, a bit too eagerly.

"It's nice," he said.

Everyone else was there, and we moved around, my arm through Vaughn's, chatting with people. Natalie stood next to Pierre, staring at him adoringly. She was quite pretty in a short red dress and bright lipstick.

Pierre was still in his purple tux, asking Regis about dinner. Lanna was beautiful in a dark green strapless dress that ended around her mid-thigh. Her makeup looked expertly done, and she stood proudly next to Denny, talking to Julia, who was also very lovely. Elliot's hair was slicked back, not-so-handsomely.

Sabrina talked to just about everyone there. When she came up to us again, she was subtly flirtatious with him; maybe she didn't think I would notice.

At one point she reached up to put one hand on his chest while he chuckled about something that was said. With a subtle movement of my own, I slid in between them and put wrapped my arms around his waist, leaning my head against his chest.

"Will lunch be served soon, Sabrina?" I asked.

She hid her disappointment well. "Yes," she said.

Just then, Regis instructed us all to go the dining area, where lunch already waited. "This is absolutely marvelous," Pierre said as we began to eat.

It was some kind of fancy dish that had a name too difficult to pronounce or remember, but it was quite good. Vaughn kept his hand on my knee while we ate, and I looked at him questioningly. He didn't seem to notice.

After lunch, we were herded back into the dining area. "Pair up however you want," Regis told us, "I'll be playing music."

I wondered what kind of music that guy would play. He wandered off to find the controls of some hidden stereo system. Everyone paired up while Sabrina leaned against the wall, her arms wrapped around herself, her expression deep in thought.

The song Regis chose was actually one I recognized, one that I thought was good. I was surprised. It was slow and soothing, the melody. I leaned my head on Vaughn's shoulder. Neither of us really knew how to dance, so we just sort of swayed, which was perfectly fine.

"I told you she likes you," I couldn't help but grumble during the middle of the song.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said.

"Sabrina," I reminded him.

"I don't think she does . . ."

"Trust me. She does."

He held me tight and kissed my hair, but didn't comment. When the song was over another came on, out of the corner of my eye, I saw Sabrina draw in a deep breath and approach us.

"Can I cut in?" she asked softly.

We stopped swaying and turned to face her. No, of course not, I wanted to snarl at her. But I didn't. Vaughn looked at me hesitantly. "Sure, Sabrina," I said, forcing the words through my teeth.

"Just for a little while," she said hurriedly. She turned to Vaughn. "You don't mind, do you?"

He hesitated again. "No," he finally said, holding out his hand.

I went to stand where she had been previously. She got a little too close to him for my liking, but at least he didn't let her put her head on his shoulder. When the song was over, he pulled away from her and walked over to me quickly. The third song was a lot faster, and Vaughn smirked as he took my hand.

"Ain't no way I'm dancing to that."

I glanced over to see Elliot trying to dance quickly, and I smirked, despite my mood. I went over to Sabrina to tell her we were leaving early. She seemed reluctant to let us go, but she nodded eventually.

"Alright; I hope you had fun," she said, looking at Vaughn as she said this.

He shrugged and then we left. I was fuming, but I tried to hide it. He tried to take my hand as he walked back, but I childishly pulled it away from him. When I walked into my house, I assumed he would just go.

But he followed me inside, a bit confused. "What's wrong?" he asked.

"I don't like her. She was just . . . all over you," I spat.

He blinked.

I scowled. "Surely you aren't that oblivious," I snapped.

His eyes narrowed. "I felt sorry for her, standing in the corner. What was I supposed to do, tell her no?"

"Yes," I said, "And since when do even care about . . . people?"

"I care," he said sharply.

I waved a hand dismissively. "Whatever. I've got to change, so if you could . . ." I gestured for the door.

"Chelsea." He looked annoyed. He put his hands on my waist, holding fast when I tried to pull away. "I'm with you. I care about you. There's nothing about her that even remotely interests me," he said.

"Nothing at all?" I asked.

He shook his head. "No." I believed him. Something in his eyes told me he was being honest. "Alright. I'm sorry I freaked out – I love you."

Those words slipped out again before I could stop them. He leaned his forehead against mine.

"I know you do." He kissed me.

***

He had work to do the next morning. "I'll meet you in the Café at one," he'd said.

So I was going to get some work done. I wanted to go to the mine, but I didn't tell Vaughn about it. It seemed like whenever I told anyone that's where I was going they got all paranoid and told me it was dangerous.

I knew they were right, but they didn't know how cautious I was about it. The hike up the mountain took a long time – I stood outside the cave at ten thirty. I had my hoe in my hands, ready. I tested each step before I put my full weight on it, just like always.

After looking for the stairs for thirty minutes and not finding anything, my mind started to wonder. I thought back to yesterday, growing annoyed again when I thought of the party yesterday. But then I remembered his declaration, that he wasn't remotely interested in her, and I felt better.

I learned a valuable lesson that day: never, ever let your mind wander while you're looking for stairs in a hazardous mine. I was thinking so hard that I forgot to test one step – just one – and then I stumbled forward, falling into unimaginable blackness.

**A/N: Just an FYI, this story isn't a love triangle. I despise love triangles. **


	19. Accidents and Secrets

_18: Accidents and Secrets _

"I think she's waking up."

The voice was indistinct and foggy. Through my incoherency, my first thought was that I was sick of passing out for one reason or another and waking up like this, so dazed and disoriented. There was a fog in my brain again, and my body was aching, hurting like it never had before.

The pain I'd felt the morning after the blizzard was nothing compared to this pain. If I moved so much as a muscle, it seemed like a thousand tiny needles were piercing my skin. It was enough to make tears pool behind my closed eyes. I did open them eventually after a few minutes, almost crying out when I accidentally moved my leg.

"Chelsea . . . ? Chelsea, can you hear me?" The voice I heard now was unfamiliar to me; I was certain I'd never heard it before.

My vision was fuzzy at first, but the haze fell away from them after a minute, and I was staring up at an attractive man with jet black hair and a small frown on his lips.

"Don't try to move," the man suggested.

"I won't," I whimpered.

Natalie stood next to the man, fidgeting nervously. "

Hey, Nat," I said weakly. Looking around, I realized that we I was back in my farmhouse, on my small bed.

Natalie was suddenly infuriated. "Chelsea, do you have any idea what hell we all had to go through . . . ? It was terrible!" She shouted.

The man glanced at her. "You should be gentle with her; she just woke up," he advised gently.

Natalie pursed her lips, and then continued. "I didn't see you at all yesterday. I didn't question it, because I figured you were with Vaughn, but in the early evening he came over to Grandpa's house, raving about how he couldn't find you anywhere, and that you were supposed to meet him . . ."

"Yes," I recalled, "I was supposed to meet him at the Café for lunch."

"Why didn't you tell him where you were going?" she groaned.

"Because he wouldn't have let me. He would have said it was too dangerous," I grumbled.

"And it was! We had everyone on this Island looking for you, Chelsea, and we were all pretty freaked when we still hadn't found you late at night. Vaughn was acting completely insane – Grandpa had to take him back to his house and calm him down," Natalie said.

"We went and asked the people who live in the church – Nathan and Alisa – and they said that maybe you'd gone up the mine. All of us hitchhiked up that godforsaken mountain and nine o' clock at night with flashlights. Thankfully, Regis knew the way to the cave; there are so many freaking forks in the path! Vaughn found the pitfall first – he shone his flashlight down the hole and saw you lying there, several floors down, totally knocked out," she continued.

Her hands tugged on her hair as she spoke. "Jeez, Chelsea, I want to hug you and choke you at the same time. I was so . . . so worried."

I half-smiled at her. "That's nice, Nat. You're right, I should have told someone where I was going . . . I was very irresponsible. I'll apologize to everyone for that." I couldn't believe that _everyone_ on this Island was looking.

I must have spoke this thought aloud accidentally, because Natalie frowned and clenched her jaw before she snapped, "Yes, _everyone._ Even that Witch who lives in the Forest helped a little – well, she helped us get through the forest, anyway, up to the trail."

"Wow," I breathed. It felt like someone had stabbed a butcher's knife into the side of my skull, and I had trouble thinking clearly. "Did – did Vaughn go back to the city?" I managed to say.

Natalie snorted. "No – he's still here. He's been freaking out like a madman ever since you disappeared. He was pacing all around here for most of the night, and we finally convinced him to go for a walk to calm himself. Sabrina went with him."

I frowned. Even that movement hurt. "Why did she go with him?" I complained.

Natalie shrugged. "He was acting totally insane. She's helping him calm down."

"Oh," I breathed. I was in too much pain to feel the amount of annoyance I would normally feel.

"You should go back to sleep," the nameless man said.

"Who are you?" I asked, my voice slurred, as my consciousness began to leave me.

"I'm Dr. Trent." I barely grasped his words before sleep claimed me.

***

I didn't feel so horrible when I woke up again. It was dark, but my one small lamp was on, illuminating my immediate surroundings. My eyes half-opened and looked around. Nobody appeared to be around.

My limbs felt numb, but at least it only ached slightly now to move them. It no longer felt someone was stabbing my head with a knife; I only felt groggy and weak. An unexpected jolt of pain ran through my arm when I lifted my hand to my head, and I groaned softly.

"Chelsea?" A familiar voice asked in the dark.

He'd been in the darker side of the room, so he wasn't visible to me before, but I saw him now, coming over to the side of my bed, his hand on mind.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm just peachy," I said a bit sharply.

He rolled his eyes. "You're going to drive me insane," he accused.

"Why?" I mumbled, still tired.

"First you almost get killed in a blizzard, going after a _dog, _and now you're falling down mines!" He sounded angry and exasperated. "Do you have any idea how crazy I was? Taro wanted to check me into an asylum."

I half-smiled at him and stoked his arm. "Yeah, it was reckless and irresponsible, I know. Natalie told me everything that happened. Was everyone on the Island seriously looking for me?" I asked.

"Yes, Everyone. They were all worried out of their minds."

"Natalie said you were acting like a lunatic," I chuckled.

"I was worried," he grumbled.

"Well, if it means anything, I would act the same way if this situation was reversed," I told him.

"It wouldn't ever be, because I'm not dense enough to be wandering around a mine without anyone knowing I was there. From now on, you tell someone," he said firmly.

"Yes, Dad," I sighed, "How long have I been out?"

"Well, most of the day yesterday, and all day today," he answered, stroking my cheek.

"Why am I still so tired?"

"Trent gave you a lot of drugs for the pain."

"Who?" I asked, confused.

"The doctor. Natalie said you met him . . ." Vaughn trailed off.

Vaguely, I remembered the dark-haired man. "Oh. What was his verdict? Will I live?" I asked jokingly.

He winced, but replied, "He said it was a miracle you didn't break a bone – you fell a long way. You're supposed to stay in bed for a minimum of five days."

"That's too long," I said, "Spring is coming soon. I have to till the fields, plant crops, water them and feed my animals. I just got a barn, you know."

"I can get that time off work. My boss has been complaining I have too many sick days saved up anyway," Vaughn assured me, his eyes kind.

"You don't have to," I said quickly, wanting him to stay but also not wanting to be selfish.

"I want to. I . . . I wouldn't be able to focus anyway, knowing that you're hurt." He turned his face away. He always did whenever he said something thoughtful or caring, like it was a weakness to be saying such things.

"I'm going to apologize to everyone on the Island," I murmured, "I feel bad, putting them all through grief."

"They'll live," he said.

"Have you been on my couch?" I asked, squinting at it and seeing a blanket and a pillow.

"Yeah. I didn't want to sleep at Mirabelle's tonight. Dr. Trent will be on the Island for a about a week, and he'll help us keep an eye on you."

"I can't pay a medical bill," I insisted.

"He's thinking of it as a vacation – Trent enjoys this Island very much, for the wide open space, like I do," Vaughn said, "Knowing that, I don't think he'll charge much."

That made me feel worse. But I was in no mood to be feeling sympathy for anyone but myself. My eyes half-closed, and I stifled a yawn. He smiled at me, in a way that could be described as loving. My heart constricted.

"Tired?" he asked.

"Yes. Come over here," I ordered, scooting over as far as I could in the little bed.

"There won't be any room," he murmured, but he got in next to me anyway.

We both had to lie on our sides, since that was the only way we could both fit, but he held me like before. The drugs combined with the ever-present contented feeling washed over me and I fell asleep quickly after that.

***

A large mug of steaming black coffee waited for me on the counter in the kitchen the next morning. Vaughn was nowhere to be seen, but I found a note saying he was out tending to my animals. The pain was beginning to come back as the drugs lost their effectiveness, but the ache wasn't as sharp as before.

My legs felt like they were made of jelly when I got up, and I was more than a little dizzy; the walls wobbled and twisted unnaturally before my eyes. I gripped my little wooden headboard for balance for a second until everything stood still again.

I sat down in one of the little wooden chairs and sipped my coffee, wrapped in one of my blankets. It was very peaceful. I was touched by the fact that Vaughn wanted to stay here on the Island and take care of me while I was unwell.

I was, however, very tired of all my 'accidents'. I vowed I would be more careful. As I sat there, I thought about how his smile had looked last night. It was so loving, so kind. I wondered if I should wait for a while and then tell him I loved him once more, just to see if I got a good answer.

I really wanted to.

But I couldn't; he'll tell me when he's ready, I reminded myself. I realized that he might be more comfortable with me if we knew a bit more about each other, like our pasts. I was still afraid to ask him about his, but maybe . . .

While I was lost in my thoughts, a familiar shape formed before my eyes. "Hi, El," I said softly.

The little Harvest Sprite smiled at me. "I heard about what happened – Lou and I followed the search party up the mountain. Everyone was sure worried about you. Thank goodness Nathan knew where you were."

"It was stupid, I know, but . . ." I trailed off.

"So the cowboy's staying here for a few days?"

I could tell that El was trying not to sound disappointed, that he was trying to be polite, possibly because I was hurt. "Yes, to take care of me," I said, "Isn't that nice of him?"

El shrugged. "Yeah, I guess so. You really do like him, don't you?" The Harvest Sprite sighed.

"I love him," I corrected in a low voice.

El didn't seem surprised at all by my statement. "I figured as much. Well, if you love him, then I should try to like him, too. After all, if you marry him some day, he'll be around all the time and I'll have to deal with his moodiness."

"Would you let him see you, if I did?" I asked curiously.

"No. I'm not allowed," El said.

I wondered who exactly made the rules he followed, but I decided to not ask. "You see relationships," I said, "and the Harvest Goddess said he feels the same way. But . . ."

"He probably just needs time," El said, "Moody cowboys are hard to love, you know?"

"Yes," I chuckled, "They are."

"I follow him around sometimes, you know, out of boredom," El informed me.

I snickered. "I'm sure he'd appreciate that _so_ much if he knew."

El smirked mischievously for a moment, but then he was serious again. "Anyway, he was acting all insane yesterday, so Sabrina offered to take a walk with him."

I bristled as I remembered that particular part of yesterday's conversation with Natalie. "Yes, I heard about that," I said sharply.

El hesitated, fidgeting with a piece of my blanket that brushed the floor. "She likes him, too. A lot," the Harvest Sprite finally murmured, "And not in a way you'd be happy with."

"I know that already," I spat, "The Harvest Goddess told me."

"And it was odd," El continued, "because, when he's around you, he feels relaxed and happy. But when he's around her, he's . . . wistful."

"What do you mean?" I asked anxiously.

"Like he's wishing for something. I don't know what." El shrugged, "But aside from that, he also feels a little annoyed. Maybe you could ask him about his weird emotions."

I stared off into space for a long time after that. El tried to talk to me some more, but when I didn't respond, he gave up and disappeared into thin air. What could Vaughn possibly be wishing for when he was around Sabrina?

Did he wish he'd never met me so he'd be free to start something with her? Or was he wishing that she would leave both of us alone? My heart ached for it to be the latter.

He'd said that he wasn't interested, but Vaughn was so complex . . .

The door opened just then, and he walked in, smiling at me and kissing my forehead. "Good morning," he grunted.

"Did you tend to Nugget, Fuzz, Woody and Bessie?" I asked.

"Fuzz?" he asked.

"That's what I named the other chicken," I said defensively.

He rolled his eyes and set about making coffee for himself. I hesitated, unsure about how to broach the subject I wanted to discuss.

"Vaughn . . ." I trailed off, getting up and ignoring the aches.

He helped me back to the bed, and when I was leaning up against the wall, he said, "What?"

"Can we talk about some things?" I asked.

He winced slightly and started fidgeting, probably nervous. "You know I'm not good with words," he grumbled.

"I won't be judging you on your word choice," I said, annoyed.

He shrugged and went back to my kitchen. When his coffee was done, he sat down at one of my little wooden chairs. I was momentarily distracted by a fantasy that sprung into my mind. I could see him getting up like this every morning, working on my farm – on what would be _our_ farm – and then coming back to get coffee.

He noticed my staring. "What?"

"Nothing," I mumbled, embarrassed.

"What did you want to talk about?" he asked, uncomfortable.

"I just thought we could talk. Get to know each other better," I said.

"I know all I need to about you," he said.

I looked away, hurt. "Fine. I won't tell you."

"But . . . I didn't mean that," he mumbled, remorseful, "Sorry. Tell me."

"About what?" I grumbled, still irritated.

"Where'd you grow up? What's your life been like?"

I told him the general gist of it; how I'd left home at a very early age due to boredom and working as a waitress in the city while living in a crummy apartment. "I always wanted to live in the country, or somewhere like this," I said, "Washing up on these shores was something of a miracle for me."

He nodded. "I'd like to live out here someday, too."

"Really? Here? On this Island?" I asked.

"Yes . . . I didn't care for it at first, but I've grown attached to it. Maybe it's just you that makes me want to be around here," he said quietly.

"I wish you were here more often," I sighed, "Two days a week really sucks."

He shrugged. "Yeah, but I have to make money, you know."

"Yes, I suppose," I mumbled, unhappy. I glanced up at him and asked the question I'd wanted to for a while. "Where'd you grow up? What's _your _life been like?"

He winced and stared down at the coffee. "It . . . hasn't been the best."

"You could tell me," I pressed, "You know I'd listen."

"Yes," he sighed, "I know you would. I just don't like talking about it to people. But . . ." He trailed off, drawing in a deep breath.

"It's not difficult to assume you've have a bad life. You're kind of cold to people, you know. Natalie thought you were the biggest jerk-face on the planet," I chuckled.

His amethyst eyes were suddenly very far away. "My mother gave me up when I was very young. I lived in different foster homes for a long time, and a lot of them didn't have the kindest caretakers," he said, his voice just as distant and his eyes, "I ran away from one of them once, and lived on the street for a little while. But things got too hard, and I had to go back, because I was close to starvation. There were a lot of other kids like me around in the big city, but most of them were either in gangs or doing drugs. I didn't want to be around that – it disgusted me. Most of the people I encountered growing up were cruel, and I don't know, it gets to you, being around that kind of thing for so long. The first real kind person I ever met was Mirabelle."

He smiled slightly. "She so kind to me, I thought she was some kind of angel back then. She starting taking care of me when I was almost eighteen. I lived with her for three months, but I left, got a job and apartment of my own, soon after my birthday. I'd been living with so many different people for so long, I thought the solitude would bring me peace. And it did, up until now."

"Why doesn't it anymore?" I asked. I didn't let my sympathy for him seep into my voice; I knew he didn't want pity.

"Because I met you. Now being alone doesn't hold the same . . . enjoyment as before. Now the only time I feel utterly at peace it when you're around." His tone made this last part sound like a weakness.

His cheeks flushed in embarrassment.

I smiled lovingly at him and ignored the squeeze in my heart. "Why didn't Mirabelle start looking after you sooner? She's your biological Aunt, isn't she?" It didn't seem like Mirabelle was the type of person to turn away a family member; she was so kind.

Vaughn pursed his lips. "Mirabelle didn't even know her sister had a kid up until then. They haven't spoken to each other in many, many years. But she took me in as soon as she found out."

I found it hard to believe that the two hadn't spoken for eighteen years, but . . . "Have you ever met your Mother?" I asked softly.

His smile was bittersweet. "I've seen her from a distance before, but no, I've never spoken to her in person. I know where she is, so I can go meet her if I ever have the strange, sudden desire to."

"Don't you want to?" I asked.

Vaughn sighed and stared out my window. "I did when I was eighteen – well, I didn't want to meet her so much as yell at her for the hell my life had been. But I lost my nerve when I saw her, across the street from where I was at. She doesn't look a thing like me." He chuckled. "Besides, if she ever wants to meet me, she knows Mirabelle knows where I am. She can come see me, not that I'd talk to her."

"Why?" I asked.

"My mother wasn't one of those people who gave me up because she had to, because she wasn't able to take care of me financially. She was just terribly irresponsible and reckless, and she had no desire for children. I'm sure it didn't bother her at all for her to leave my life forever. Because of this, I've decided it's best we don't speak. Mirabelle knows what a horrid person my mother is."

"What about your father?" I murmured.

Vaughn shrugged. "I've never seen him. I have no idea who he is, and neither does Mirabelle. She would have told me if she did, but of course there was no way she _could_ know."

"Your Mother probably knows. If you ever did speak with her, you could ask," I said.

He shrugged. "I don't really want to know. It doesn't matter anymore." He didn't sound sad as he just this, just matter-of-fact. I raised one hand and beckoned for him to come over. He set down the coffee and climbed on the bed, pulling me close.

I leaned my head on his chest and he kissed my hair. "Sorry about your unpleasant life," I murmured.

His hand stroked my arm. "It's not bad, now," he sighed, "It's actually kind of . . . nice."

I smiled, though he couldn't see. I felt a lot closer to him now, and the joy I felt at that was wonderful.

***

I had to stay in bed for the rest of the day, unfortunately, because whenever I tried to sneak outside for just a little walk, thinking my muscles might be kinder to me if I stretched them, he was there, almost drag me back to the bed.

"Stay here," he said, going back to whatever he'd been previously doing.

"I'm bored," I complained.

He smirked, but didn't reply.

At about one in the afternoon, Vaughn said he was going to go get us something from the Café, since my kitchen was somewhat bare.

"Do they let you get take-out?" I asked.

"No. But the owner's a decent person – she'll understand." He kissed my forehead and left.

After about ten minutes, I got out of bed and went outside, ignoring the aches that plagued me. It would just be a little walk, I told myself. But when I was halfway across my field, a sharp pain ran down my leg, sharper than the others.

With a small yelp, I dropped to the ground and held my leg, curled up in a ball. Tears sting in my eyes as I started rubbing it gently. I tried to stand after several minutes, but I simply couldn't. I tried to get up three more times, but on the last try the pain was so bad I feared I would black out.

Grumbling, I lay there, waiting for Vaughn to get back, hoping he wouldn't be too angry about my sneaking out. There as a thin layer of frost on my field soon, but I knew that it would melt away soon with the coming of spring.

Still, it was awfully uncomfortable lying there on the cold. I saw a figure approaching in the distance, and I raised my eyes, squinting in the sunlight, surprised he was back so early. But as the figure got closer, I saw it wasn't Vaughn at all but a tall black-haired man who was vaguely familiar to me.

Dr. Trent, I realized.

I saw him walk up to the door of my house and knock. I sighed, and then called out, "I'm over here."

Dr. Trent's eyes scanned the field until he saw me. He hurried over, his expression concerned. When he reached me, he held out his hand to help me up.

"I, uh, can't stand," I mumbled, embarrassed, "I was just walking a little, and I got this blinding pain in my leg . . ."

Dr. Trent frowned in disapproval. "I told you to stay in bed," he said.

"I know," I muttered.

Unexpectedly, he leaned down and picked me up. I gasped a little in surprise. He carried me back into my house and sat me down on the bed.

"You're not going to get better if you don't rest," Dr. Trent said, "You may _feel_ better sometimes, but that's not always the case. Take it easy for another four days or so. Alright?"

Now that I saw him in the light and was fully conscious, I realized that he was a nice piece of eye candy. Vaughn was attractive in a different sort of way, a better sort of way, but I still didn't mind watching Dr. Trent for a while.

"Huh? Oh, yes," I said, answering his question after I remembered it.

"Vaughn's staying with me for a while, and he's been really strict. I just wanted a walk," I grumbled.

Dr. Trent smiled. "If you want to walk, walk around your house a bit. Don't push yourself, though."

"Promise, doctor," I sighed.

I leaned back against the pillows and pulled a blanket over myself. "So, do you like Sunny Island?" I asked politely.

Dr. Trent nodded and grinned. "Yes, it's a very peaceful place. I'll leave as soon as you're better, though – I don't like to stay away from my wife for long." His voice was loving.

Just then, the door opened and Vaughn came in, two large paper bangs in his hands. He walked in, set them on the table, and turned to the eye candy – err, I mean Dr. Trent.

"You here to check on her?" Vaughn asked.

"Yes. She'll be fine, so long as she _stays_ in bed." His eyes flickered over to me accusingly for a second, but he didn't rat me out.

Vaughn nodded. "I'll make sure she stays there," he said gruffly.

Dr. Trent walked to the door and smiled nicely at us. "Goodbye, then – I'll be back tomorrow, around this time. I'm going to find the Harvest Goddess' pond; I hear it's lovely." On that note, he left.

Vaughn gave me the small platter of grilled fish and a can of grape juice. It was delicious. "So what did you do while I was away?" He asked, raising an eyebrow as he pulled out a big bowl of whatever he was eating.

"Nothing," I lied, averting my eyes.

"Oh? Nothing at all?"

I drank the soda, watching him suspiciously. "Well, maybe I walked a little bit," I admitted.

Vaughn nodded. "I thought it was something like that. The doctor's voice was full of implications."

I smiled at him and scooted over so we could both sit on the bed and eat. It wasn't the most comfortable position, but at least I was close to him.

"What are you having?" I asked.

"Porridge," he answered promptly.

"And how is it?" I asked.

"Deliciously plain," he replied snidely.

The rest of the day passed without incident, and though Vaughn was in the house much of the time, it was quiet often. Neither of us seemed uncomfortable that way; it was actually very nice. And for the first time, I felt utterly confident that Vaughn and I were supposed to be together and Sabrina didn't have a prayer of messing this up.


	20. The past, natives and recovery

_19: The past, natives and recovery_

I still wasn't allowed to walk the next day, though the aches were dulling and hurting much less. "I'm fine now," I insisted to the doctor when he came at eleven the next morning.

"No, you're not," Dr. Trent insisted, "Just a few more days, Chelsea, okay? If the pain is too bad, take some of these." He handed me a small box of Tylenol.

I took them grudgingly.

Dr. Trent left after that, smiling slightly to himself. Vaughn snickered when he saw my annoyed expression.

"Am I such a horrible caretaker that you can't stand three more days of it?" he asked, smirking. He was laying next to me now, his arm around my side.

"No, _you're_ wonderful," I told him, kissing his cheek, "It's this being in bed all the time that's driving me nuts. I've been working a lot lately; I'm not used to being lazy. Besides, I'm sure you're sick of my company by now."

He rolled his eyes. "I've gotten sick of a lot of people in my life, but you're certainly not one of them."

"You like spending time with me," I sighed.

"Yes." He smiled.

"You like to take care of me," I continued.

"Yes."

"You _like_ me," I said sourly.

The smile fell away from his face, and for a second he looked very sad. "Yes," he breathed, "I do."

His eyes were very intense as he said this, making my breathing become uneven and my heart splutter. He leaned forward and kissed me deeply, grunting when my leg wrapped around his hip. My bliss was interrupted, though, when we both heard a light knock at the door. "Door," I gasped, almost incoherent.

"Ignore it," he murmured, his lips at my throat.

But there were three more raps on the door, and he got up to answer it. I cursed the person behind the door with every disgusting word in the dictionary. Vaughn opened the door. I almost groaned aloud when I saw the short, dark-haired woman behind it.

Sabrina smiled shyly. "Is Chelsea here?" she asked him meekly.

Vaughn nodded and gestured to me. Sabrina walked over to the side of my bed and smiled down at me, her eyes concerned. "Hey, Chelsea. I just came by to see how you're doing. Natalie wanted to come, too, but she had a lot of work to do, and Pierre was distracting her anyway."

"I'm alright, thank you," I said as nicely as possible.

Sabrina turned to Vaughn. "Mirabelle knows that you're busy helping Chelsea and everything, but she told me to ask if you'd come down to the Shop for about an hour to help her with some things."

He looked down at me. "Do you mind?"

"No," I said honestly, "Go help your Aunt."

Vaughn nodded walked to the door, muttering a goodbye to us both.

I sat up and watched Sabrina warily as she sat down in one of my little wooden chairs. She smiled at me politely. "You gave us all quite a scare," she told me.

"Yes, I know. I'm going to tell them all I apologize. They didn't need the stress."

"But it's nice to know how much everyone on this Island cares for you, isn't it? It's like you're all one big family." Her voice was warm.

"Yes, I suppose. I would do the same for any of them," I said truthfully.

She nodded. "It looks like you'll be missing the end-of-the-year festival," she sighed, "But maybe you can come to the one where we all eat rice candy."

"There's always next year." I shrugged.

There was a bit of an awkward silence before she broke it. "Doesn't Vaughn only come on Wednesdays and Thursdays? Mirabelle told me. Is he staying behind to help you?"

"Yes." My voice was grateful. "I have no idea he was so attentive, but he's been wonderful."

She nodded slowly. "And you're . . . together?" There was a hint of sadness in her tone, and possibly envy.

I pretended not to notice and answered as nicely as possibly. "Yes, we're very much together."

"I'm very happy for you," Sabrina said, and this time she sounded genuine. She paused, and her violet eyes glazed over for a second, as if she was thinking deeply about something.

"You know . . ." she murmured quietly, "I do believe I've met Vaughn. Before coming to this Island, I mean."

"Really?" I asked.

"Yes . . . once. When my mother was still with us, and I was a child, about eleven or so." I wondered briefly where her mother had gone. Had she died, or left her husband? It wasn't my place to ask. "We lived in the city then, in a house a lot bigger than the one of this Island. Well, it was closer to a castle than a house," she chuckled.

"A castle?"

"Well, it had a lot of towers and balconies, at least," Sabrina recalled. "One sunny day, my mother took me to the park while Father worked on some important papers. I remember having a lot of fun that day, on the swings – they were my favorite. Anyway, I went back to the benches to look for my mother, when I noticed a small, thin boy. He struck me as different because he wasn't playing with any of the other kids, and he had the most remarkable eyes – darker than mine, like amethyst. They were beautiful to me." Her voice was adoring.

"But he was so cold to me when I said hello to him – I'm a little shy, you know, so I left quickly after that. I went back to the swings after speaking with my mother. We stayed at the park all day, and I watched him for most of it. He didn't seem to have anyone with him, and he never got off the bench or spoke to anyone. It made me curious, and a little worried for him. It struck me that maybe he didn't have a home. My mother had brought lunch to the park for us to have – it was porridge. I offered some to him, and he smiled and said it was his favorite. He was a lot nicer to me after that, and we talked for a while until I had to leave. But I never forgot him."

"Are you sure it was Vaughn?" I asked hesitantly.

Sabrina nodded. "Yes, I'm quite sure. He looks much the same, older, though, of course. I looked around for him a lot whenever I went to the park, but I never saw him again." Her voice was gloomy now. "I'm sure he doesn't remember me."

"He hasn't said anything about it," I mumbled.

"No, he wouldn't, would he?" Sabrina shrugged slightly.

She got up and smiled sadly at me. "I apologize for boring you with my story," she murmured as she walked to the door.

"No, it's alright. Goodbye, Sabrina," I said.

She nodded once and left. I sighed to myself when she was gone. I knew that, if this whole Vaughn-thing wasn't going on, I would genuinely like Sabrina, just as much as I liked Julia and Natalie. I can be friends with her, I decided, I just have to be careful.

***

I did indeed miss the end-of-the-year festival, and the rice candy one. But Vaughn brought me back a little of each and stuck it in the fridge.

"Everyone misses you," Vaughn told me.

"They do? Even Lanna?" I asked.

He smirked. "Even Lanna."

The day after the festival, though, he had to go back to the city. I stood with him now, on the dock, watching the boat approach in the distance.

"Thank you," I said, "for taking care of me. I'll miss you."

"It wasn't so bad. You're pretty easy to live with," he replied, pulling his hat down over his eyes.

"I'm going to pay Gannon to build the bridge to the Jungle," I said, stroking his cheek, "You can see it when you get back."

He was suddenly concerned. "Maybe you shouldn't go up there. The last thing I need is for you to be attacked by lunatic natives or wild animals."

"That would be just my luck, wouldn't it?" I sighed.

He smirked.

"I'll be fine," I insisted, "I'm a big girl."

The boat was at the dock then, so I kissed him goodbye and he left. I waited until the boat was completely out of view before turning back and walking to my farm. Natalie was waiting for me outside the door.

"You're up early," I commented as she began walking with me to the barn.

"Yeah, I guess. How are you feeling, Chelsea?"

"Fine. The aches are almost gone now. I'm staying away from mines for a while."

"You'd better. I'm getting sick of you almost dying or passing out," Natalie groaned.

"One of those times was your fault, you know," I snapped. I instantly regretted that.

She pursed her lips. She was silent the whole time I tended to Bessie, Fuzz and Nugget. The sun was blazing hotly in the sky and Nugget was old enough to graze now, so I put her in my little material stone fence.

"So," Natalie said as she walked me to Gannon's, "Pierre and I have been hanging out."

"Still?" I asked, "Aren't you sick of talking about food?"

"Actually, yeah. I told him that. His feelings were hurt, but at least he knows what I think. We still discuss food, but less often now."

"Wow," I said, awed.

"He's so amazing, Chelsea," Natalie sighed.

"Have you kissed yet?" I asked.

Natalie smiled widely. "Yes. And it was awesome."

I customarily asked for details, and she gave them to me without hesitation. I tried not to appear grossed out as she went through every insignificant little thing, but it was pretty difficult.

Gannon was behind the counter as usual.

He nodded to the both of us when we came in. I could Charlie in the back, by the table, talking to someone, probably Eliza. "Morning, Gannon." I pulled out the money for the most expensive bridge and gave it to him.

"I'd like you to build the bridge to the jungle."

Gannon nodded and took the money. "I'll have it done by tomorrow."

"Great." Natalie and I turned and left.

***

I moved around the Island a lot that day, and it became apparent to me that there were a lot of tourists who had come here during the time I was locked up in my house. At the base of the mountain, I saw a small group of men and women with tools in their hands and hardhats.

Miners.

When I went down to the beach, there were a five or six elderly gentlemen fishing. I even met a few people who were only on the Island because of Lanna. "I'm her biggest fan," one lady gushed to me when I introduced myself. "I'm waiting for her to come out of her house so I can meet her."

I looked at her like she was insane. "Uh . . . okay," I said.

I also met someone who had a crazed obsession with Pierre. "He makes the _best_ food," the chubby woman said, "I have to get him to make something for me."

Natalie wouldn't like you, I thought to myself. But a lot of the people who came here were simply looking for peace or scenery.

"It's so wide-open and beautiful here," one man named Daniel said, "There aren't a lot of places like that anymore. I love it here."

Taro seemed pleased with our Island's newfound popularity. "The Original Inn is jam-packed," He said proudly, "They might build a Hotel in East town, greater and more refined."

"They should," I agreed, "There's a ton of new people here."

"And it's all because of you, Chelsea," Taro complimented me. "You're doing a great job."

"I hope so," I murmured.

***

I rose the next morning very early, tended to the animals, and watered my newly planted crops; eggplants and a heck of a lot of turnips. My harvest would be twice – if not more – than it was last fall, I was sure of it, and I needed the money. I was going to get a birthing pen for my barn next, or possibly an egg incubator.

Now that all the bridges were built, I could fully concentrate on building up my farm into something grand. When I was done with the work, I hurried off to East town. I walked past the Diner and the Café and went north until reached the newly-built bridge. It was nicely done just like the other two had been.

The foliage was thick ahead of me, and I worried that if I went deeply into the jungle I wouldn't be able to get back. So I decided I wouldn't go far, just enough to get an idea of what was here. I was only about twenty feet in when I felt something sharp pressing into my back. I jumped and whirled, coming face-to-face with a tall man holding a spear.

His brown hair was standing straight up, and there were lines on his cheeks, drawn with some kind of paint. He wore a black and yellow pelt, and his skin was dark like Denny's. The man scowled at me, showing his teeth.

"Why you here?" He asked, using improper grammar. A thought crossed him and his expression became even darker. "You come to steal food?"

I shook my head almost violently, frightened of the vicious-looking spear he was pointing at me. "No, no, I – I just had the bridge built, and I wanted to see what was up here. Please don't point that at me. I don't mean you harm."

Hesitantly, the man dropped the spear point and held it to his chest. "Okay." He seemed to believe me. "I am Shea. I am great warrior. Someday I wish to be as great as Wada."

"Wada?" I asked.

"My father. Not real one, though. Shea is grateful for him, though. What is your name?" Shea asked.

"Chelsea," I said, holding up my hand for him to shake.

He stared at it, not comprehending. I dropped my hand. "Chelsea wish to meet Wada?" Shea asked.

"Sure," I said.

He led me through the thick jungle, always aware, listening intently the sounds around him. Finally, we came to a little hut. He went inside without hesitation, gesturing for me to follow. Inside, there was a huge black put set over a pit in the middle of the room.

Ancient, tribal decorations hung on the walls, and the pelt of a bear lay on the floor, next to another man. His skin was almost grey, and he looked to be a great deal older than Shea. He wore feathers and bracelets and other intriguing things.

A spear lay next to him; he sat on the floor, next to the large pot. He glanced up, instantly reaching for his weapon and getting to his feet when he saw me.

"Shea!" The man barked, "Who . . . this?"

Shea stood in front of me protectively. "She good, Wada. She means us no harm. She wishes to befriend us."

Wada's eyes narrowed. "You . . . sure, Shea?"

Shea nodded.

Wada put down the spear without hesitation then. Shea breathed a sigh of relief and went to stand by the older man.

"I'm Chelsea," I offered.

Wada studied me for several minutes. "Chelsea . . . human . . . like us," he murmured.

I blinked. Of course I was human. What else would I be?

"The bridge that connects the jungle to the rest of the Island; I had it rebuilt," I informed them, "There's a civilization now."

Wada looked surprised. "Island has been . . . . deserted for many years. How does . . . Chelsea know this?"

"I live there," I answered, "I run a farm."

"With animals?" Shea asked eagerly.

Wada looked at Shea disapprovingly. "Animals belong to . . . Chelsea. They are not . . . for us to hunt."

Shea looked disappointed, but he nodded sadly. "Shea understand, Wada."

"I have to get back now," I said, "But I'll come visit you from time to time, if you'd like."

Shea smiled widely. "Shea made a friend. Shea is happy." He did a little dance to show his joy.

"Would you mind showing me the way?" I asked, "I could get lost here."

Shea nodded, leaning the spear against the wall and grabbing a sharp knife from the table. "Shea show Chelsea the way. Shea will protect you."

He left the hut, and I followed closely after him. We got to the bridge fairly quickly.

"Thank you, Shea," I said, "It was nice meeting you."

The tribal man nodded. "Yes, Good to meet you, too. I must hunt now," he said.

He hurried back into the jungle, knife in hand. I thought about my strange encounter with them on my way back to the farmhouse. They were certainly odd.

But likeable.

***

Weeks began passing, and spring turned into summer. Like Taro had said, Gannon and the construction workers built a grand hotel in East town, and tourists flocked there. The Island was not quite so populated in the summer, though. It was much hotter this season, and less comfortable. Sometime in mid-spring, Chen had showed up at my door and gave me a beautiful brown horse he'd gotten from a friend.

"I don't have a place for him," he'd said, "But maybe you do?"

I'd accepted, but I hadn't tried riding him yet. I was nervous about the whole thing, so I was waiting until we were more comfortable with each other, and then Vaughn would show me how to do it properly.

I'd named the horse Spirit, another very original name. But at least no one made fun of it. I'd had Gannon built an egg incubator, and some new feeders, so I now had two fully grown chickens – Fuzz and Nugget – and two chicks, Tiger and Junior.

I was currently saving money to have him build a birthing pin. I got the feeling that while Bessie was still a very happy cow, she was also a little lonely. After she'd matured, I'd purchased a milker from Mirabelle and used it.

At first, the milk was low-quality, a C. But not it was ranking at about a B+, and hopefully it would be an A soon. Taro was very pleased at how well everything was moving along; he told me so often. Julia and Elliot were getting pretty serious, and I wondered if they'd get married someday.

It was very possible. After them, it would be Denny and Lanna; maybe even Natalie and Pierre. She continued to tell me how incredible he was and I continued to listen politely and refrain from vomiting at her kissy stories. Of course, thinking about the future of all the Island couples made me think of my own future.

Over the course of the last season, I thought things had started getting semi-serious with Vaughn. It seemed like he could talk with me openly about many things now, though he was still a bit touchy with some subjects.

I fell more in love with him every day I saw him.

He still hadn't told me what I wanted to hear, and I still wasn't pressing him, but I could see loving emotions in his eyes, felt it in the way he kissed me.

But I didn't ask about it. Maybe he never would say; maybe he'd just expect me to know by the way he acted. I grudgingly accepted this fact after pondering over it for a long time. Though it saddened me – pained me a little, even – I could get over it. I could. I _would. _

Sabrina was still very subtle around Vaughn, but I caught her staring at him often, either longingly or sadly. It was obvious that she was happy when he was around; she smiled and laughed often.

He didn't talk to her much, but when he did, he was polite and pleasant. When she flirted with him very delicately, he would always make up some excuse to leave and then kiss away the jealousy from my expression.

Sabrina always seemed to show up at least once around me on Wednesdays and Thursdays, always for some reason or another, but she always left quickly, seemingly satisfied with just telling him hello. But I didn't let it get to me too much. He'd told me that there was nothing to worry about.

He'd said that he was with _me, _that he cared for _me. _So I just decided to trust him. Trust went along with love, after all. Only a few days after the new hotel had been built, I met a new person who would be staying here for quite some time.

I met him the morning after he arrived; I stood in his hotel room now. He stuck out his hand politely, and I shook it.

"Hey, nice to meet you. My name's Mark," he said.

He was attractive, with messy blonde hair and bright green eyes. He wore a light blue cap with jeans and a t-shirt.

"I'm Chelsea, the Island's rancher." I no longer felt the need to add that my ranch was only just starting out; it was beginning to thrive, and I was proud.

His eyes lit up. "Oh, good, just who I want to talk to. I left home a little while ago because I have the dream of becoming a great rancher. Maybe I could come help you with your work some time? I would love to learn a few things. I'm staying on this Island until I think I'm ready to start a farm of my own. I won't be rebuilding any civilizations, though, like you've done. I really admire your hard work," he added, smiling widely.

"Thank you; this Island means everything in the world to me," I said honestly, "And the people on it. We're like a family, you know."

Mark nodded. "Everyone here knows each other and is kind – it's odd, but refreshing. The city is nothing like that, you know?" I nodded.

"Yes, I know. I used to live there – I moved to this Island only a few seasons ago."

He looked impressed. "Really? I don't think I could have done everything you've done, in just a few seasons."

I blushed at his flattery. "Thank you. I've love for you to come help me sometime, but, really, you should ask Taro, not me. He knows a lot more than I do."

"The old man that lives next to the Animal Shop? Alright, thanks for the tip."

I nodded. "You're welcome." I turned to leave, but he suddenly looked uncomfortable, so I stopped and asked, "Is something wrong?"

"No, not at all," Mark said. "It's just . . . well, - and I hope you don't think I'm crazy for asking – but maybe we could to dinner or something some time? I hear the food at the Diner is awesome."

I blinked at him in surprise. "Oh – uh . . ." I trailed off.

He noticed my hesitation. "Oh, sorry. Do you have a boyfriend?"

"Yes, I actually do," I said, "Sorry."

Mark shrugged. "It's okay. Maybe some other time."

"Sure," I agreed, hoping he didn't take that literally.

***

The next day was the first Wednesday of summer. I had worked hard the past week, and I was more than a little exhausted with I met him at the dock early that morning, but my joy overshadowed the tiredness when he came out onto the dock.

I threw my arms around him without hesitation and kissed him for a long time. Vaughn chuckled and kept his arm around me as we started walking back to my farmhouse. He'd begun sleeping over at my house lately, and I'd started to think about getting a bigger bed.

"So you missed me?" he asked me smugly.

"Yes," I answered, "I did. I met someone new – his name is Mark, and he's got an interest in farming, too. I promised to show him a few things, but really, Taro would do a better job."

"You're an excellent farmer," he disagreed, "I'm sure you'd have plenty of things to teach."

We took a little nap when we got back to my house, lying on our side as usual. Exhaustion overcame me and I fell into sleep easily. When I woke up, he was not there. I found a note on my table, next to a big mug of coffee.

_Had to go to work. Come help me if you want. _

It was abrupt and to-the-point, just like he was. I drank the coffee and fed Woody before I set out for the Animal Shop, whistling the whole way. Julia and Mirabelle were both in the kitchen when I arrived, making something delicious for lunch.

"Good afternoon, my dear," Mirabelle said sweetly when I came.

The both of them had been treating me like a family member as of late, possibly because they thought I would be in the future. "Would you like to stay for lunch? Or did you just come to see Vaughn?" Julia asked.

"Vaughn," I replied, "But we can stay for lunch. Is he in the back?"

"No, he's done with animals. He's doing some paperwork in his room. Sabrina is back there, too. She told us she had to speak with him about something."

"Maybe they're having another party," Mirabelle said, "The last one was so exquisite."

My blood turned to ice and my heart hammered in my chest. I turned my eyes away from them so they couldn't see. There's nothing to worry about, I told myself, and you're overreacting.

Mirabelle noticed my discomfort, no matter how I tried to hide it. "Whatever is the matter, Chelsea?" she asked, concerned.

"Nothing, Mirabelle," I lied.

She didn't press, but there were questions in her eyes. I turned and started walking down the hall without looking back.


	21. Betrayal and forgiveness

_20: Betrayal and forgiveness _

The first thing I noticed was that his door was opened just a crack. I heard voices on the other side of the door, and, though I knew I shouldn't, I stopped to eavesdrop.

I wanted to know what she was telling him. I wanted to know what he would say in return. It could be totally innocent, I reminded myself. But in my heart I knew it wasn't.

Not this time.

I got as close to the door as I dared and listened intently.

" . . . It's been awfully hot around here lately, hasn't it? Even for summer." That was Sabrina's voice.

"Yes – the city isn't as warm," I heard Vaughn's voice reply.

I also heard the shuffling of papers. "I really ought to get back to work, Sabrina."

"I know. Have you seen the calendar for this season? There sure are a lot of festivals," she mused, ignoring his request.

"Yes," he said gruffly, "There is."

"My favorite is the Fireworks Festival," she sighed, "They're so pretty. Don't you agree?"

"Not really," he answered honestly, "I usually get bored during that festival. But it might be different this year, since Chelsea will be going with me."

I smiled at the happiness in his voice.

"Yes. I'm sure you'll go. With Chelsea." Sabrina murmured sadly.

Then there was absolute silence. I was frustrated with it after several minutes. I dared to peek in, just enough to see. Luckily, the door did not creak when I moved it slightly. I saw that he was sitting at a desk, which was covered with papers, his back to me.

Sabrina stood in next to him, so I was looking at her profile now. If she happened to look to the right, it was very possible I would be caught. But I bravely – and perhaps stupidly – kept peering in, my heart in my throat.

She was staring wistfully at him, fidgeting with the hem of her sweater. Vaughn continued scribbling something on a piece of paper before he finally looked up at her. He groaned and went back to writing.

"Sabrina, don't bring it up again."

She looked pained. "I haven't. I haven't said anything about it since I got here. But I . . . have you at least thought about it?"

He stood up abruptly and leaned back against the wall, frowning.

I prayed neither of them would look toward the door.

"No. There's nothing _to_ think about. I . . . I know what I want," he almost whispered.

"Do you?" she murmured, stepping forward. "Are you absolutely positive?"

Vaughn paused a second, thinking something over. "Yes," he finally said.

She sighed, and hesitated before speaking softly, almost embarrassed. "We . . . we would be good together, you know. I know that your life hasn't been the best . . . I met you once when we were kids, remember?"

She continued without waiting for his answer, perhaps afraid of what it would be. "I know you worry about money a lot. If we were together, though, you'd never have to worry about it again."

He bit his lip and considered what she was saying for a split second before growing angry. "Money? You're using the _money_ excuse?" he spat.

She shrugged. "It's just a perk," she said, "But I meant it before, when I said we'd be good together. My Father might not like it at first, but . . . but it could work. I really like you, Vaughn." Hesitantly, she approached him further, until they were quite close indeed.

My brain wasn't even making coherent thoughts at this point; I could only listen and wait, and try to remember to breathe.

"Maybe if you gave us a chance," Sabrina continued softly, "You'd see that . . . that we're _supposed_ to be together. I've known it ever since I was eleven."

Vaughn blinked and didn't answer. But he really didn't have the chance to, because Sabrina was leaning in, her intentions clear in her eyes. Vaughn didn't move.

It felt exactly like the pain of falling down the mine and the pain of freezing to death in a numbing blizzard combined when I saw her kiss him. It truly felt like some invisible being had waltzed up to me and had reached into my chest, ripped out my heart and then ran away with it.

For a moment, I felt truly empty.

But then I remembered; I had to watch his reaction. Maybe he would be disgusted. Maybe he would pull away and yell obscene things at her. Maybe he would profess his undying love for me to her so she would know nothing would ever happen with them.

Any of those things sounded wonderful to me.

She kissed him, moving her lips with his, and he didn't push her away. But he didn't really kiss back, either. He just stood there, like a statue, while she did everything. Finally, though, after a minute, he put his hands on her arms and pulled her back, resolve in his eyes.

What the resolve was for, though, I didn't know, because I had seen enough. True, he hadn't actually kissed her. But just the fact that he didn't really put up a fight stabbed into my chest like a brutal knife.

Maybe this was why he'd said he was 'confused'. Maybe he never loved me at all. Maybe I was just an experiment until he found the real thing.

I didn't make any noise at all as I went down the hall, because I still didn't want them to know I was there. They could do whatever they wanted. I didn't care. I was sick and tired of worrying about it.

I wished the Harvest Goddess had never warned me at all. It would have all come crashing down on me at once, but at least I never would have had to suffer the anxiety. Tears leaked out of the corners of my eyes as I walked, and I was unable to stop them, so I didn't even try.

I did try, however, to hide my face from Julia and Mirabelle. I had no such luck. Mirabelle was in the kitchen, so she didn't see, but Julia was right next to the door when I came out, so there was nowhere to hide.

"Chelsea?" Julia asked in concern as I pulled the door open.

I didn't answer her. I didn't want to talk to anyone right now. But she followed me outside, and kept following me, calling my name, even when I began walking very fast.

Finally, just I was reaching my land, I whirled and all but snarled at her, "Go away."

I turned and flat-out sprinted to my farmhouse, slamming the door behind me. I sat down on my bed and clutched a pillow. My door opened, and I cursed not having locks. Julia came in with a very bewildered expression.

"Chelsea . . . ? What's wrong? Please tell me," she begged as the tears flowed more freely now.

"I don't want to talk about it," I said dejectedly.

Julia came to sit next to me. "Did something happen while you were talking to Vaughn . . . ? What was it?" She sounded truly worried.

I wasn't sure why I told her everything. Maybe because I'd kept it bottled up for so long that it was just exploding out of me now.

I told her about the Harvest Goddess' warnings, how she'd come to be in dreams, and all about the Harvest Sprites.

I told her that I'd been warned about Sabrina since before she got here, and how I'd been worrying about it for too long.

I finished with the most recent event, and then fell silent.

Julia didn't speak for a long time when I was done. She stared at me, her blue eyes lost in thought. "I normally wouldn't believe this sort of thing," she finally said, "Because . . . . Well, the Harvest Goddess and Harvest Sprites simply don't exist."

"I didn't think they did, either," I mumbled, "But they are. I hope you don't think I'm insane."

"No, I don't think you're crazy. I . . . I believe you. I think you're telling me the truth. I mean, why would you make it up?"

"Why indeed?" My voice was weak.

She put one of her arms over my shoulders comfortingly, and then I turned my head into her shoulder and cried. I'm not sure how long I cried, but Julia never complained; she let me cry without interruption.

But when there weren't any more tears, I pulled back, wiping at my eyes. "Thanks Julia," I said gratefully, "Thank you."

"I can't believe he would do this. Not now . . ." She trailed off.

The tears came again, and my voice came out all squeaky. "I _love_ him, Julia . . . what the hell am I supposed to do with that?" I sobbed.

She looked quite surprised at my declaration.

"You . . . ?" She was suddenly angry. "I'm going to talk to him," she said, "I'm going to tell him what a horrid person he is."

"No," I gasped, "Please don't. He can do whatever he wants. He should be happy. It's best if just end this, and then . . ." I was trying to be strong, to be noble.

I hated it.

"Are you sure, Chelsea . . . ? I mean, maybe this is a complete misunderstanding. Maybe you should hear him out," Julia encouraged.

"Why? So he can hurt me more? No." I shook my head. "But I have to go find him. I have to . . . to end this." I got up and started walking to the door, albeit robotically.

Julia might have asked me to come back, but I wasn't listening. People might have tried to talk to me on my way to the Animal Shop, but I didn't notice.

When I opened the door, Mirabelle was panicking. "Chelsea! Chelsea, what happened? I mean, Julia ran after you when you left the Shop, and Vaughn just stormed out of here a few minutes ago. And where did Sabrina go?" Her voice was thick with concern.

"Everything's fine, Mirabelle. I just need to talk to your nephew," I said.

She must have noticed the pain in my eyes. "Chelsea, what's wrong?" Mirabelle asked.

"Nothing," I murmured, "I just have to do something . . . hard. Where is he?"

"I'm assuming he's either at the beach or the forest."

I turned and left the Shop without so much as a goodbye. I would check the beach first, I decided. I found him, leaning up against the rock that gave me seaweed in the spring. He was staring out at the ocean, the same indifferent expression that was usually on his face.

When he saw me, he smiled slightly and reached for my hand. "Hey," he murmured, pulling me close.

I moved back quickly before he could kiss me, angry. How could he be kissing me as if nothing had happened?

I was so angry, that I wasn't thinking. My hand came up without my conscious permission, and then I slapped him hard across his cheek. He stumbled backward a few feet, his eyes wide and surprised.

"What the - ?" He cursed, rubbing his cheek, which was a little red.

"What was that for?" he snapped angrily.

"You don't have to pretend anymore, Vaughn. Just don't," I said.

He blinked in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

I bit the inside of my cheek. "I went to the Animal Shop this morning . . . and, um, saw an unpleasant thing."

Understanding dawned on him, and he opened his mouth to speak.

I raised up my hand to stop him. "No, don't even. Please. Maybe…maybe this is how it's supposed to be. Maybe you're supposed to be with her. Maybe you want to be. You should be. I don't want this anymore," I told him, "I'm . . . I don't want to see you anymore."

He moved to put his hands on my shoulders, slight panic in his eyes. "I didn't even kiss her," he insisted.

"But you didn't do anything about it. You just stood there," I snapped.

"Well, that's because I was . . . thinking," he muttered.

"What an excellent time to think," I snarled sarcastically, "I'm not _able_ to think when I'm kissing you."

He sighed in frustration. "Will you just listen to me?"

His tone was bordering on desperate, and it hurt my heart to see it, so I mumbled, "Yes. And then I'm going."

He shook his head. "You remember how hard life was before, for me . . . and I admit, for a second, I honestly considered it, because I saw how easy it would be, with her . . ."

I whirled and started walking away, disgusted. If he wanted to tell me _that_, then surely it was just to be cruel.

He caught my hand, though, and pulled me back. "I'm not finished," he snapped when I tried to go again.

"I don't want to hear it." I tried to push him away, but he wasn't having that.

He turned us so my back was pressed against the seaweed rock, and he stood in front me. I had no way to escape. "Listen," he snapped.

He drew in a deep breath to calm himself, and then he began. "As I was saying, I honestly considered it. If I didn't know you, I know I would have started something with Sabrina, if only for the money. But . . . but I've changed since we've met. You know that I'm . . . happier now, and material things don't mean as much as they once did. All I want now is to be with you, because you're the most important thing. Anything else would just be . . . wrong. I wouldn't care of you lived in a cardboard box and had a penny to your name. I want to be with you. I love you."

Though he struggled for words as he said all this, his eyes burned with sincerity. I stared at him, surprised he was telling me now what I had been waiting to hear for a long time.

"You . . ." I trailed off.

"Yeah – I love you. I'm sorry I didn't see it before. I'm an idiot. But I'm sure." He kissed me then, without waiting for my answer, his lips rough and demanding.

For a second I was frozen, unsure. _Screw it, _I thought to myself, kissing him back just as urgently. It was inevitable that I would forgive him.

I loved him. And he loved me.

What else mattered?

"Ahem," I heard someone say.

Vaughn pulled away, whirling around to see his cousin standing there, her arms folded over her chest.

"I'm assuming you made up?" She asked.

I nodded and smiled widely.

"Good." Julia grinned. "I wasn't looking forward to murdering my cousin."

"I would have liked to see you try," Vaughn muttered.

Julia made a face at him. And then we all walked back to the Animal Shop.

***

"So what are you going to tell her?" I asked that night as I was brushing my teeth.

"Who?" Vaughn called, from the next room.

I spat into the sink. "Sabrina," I said, my tone implying it should be obvious. I didn't really feel uncomfortable talking about her now, knowing everything was the way it should be now.

He was lying on my bed, his hands behind his head. He sighed deeply. "What I told her in the beginning. That nothing will ever happen with us," he said.

"What exactly did she ask you?" I murmured, curiously, lying down beside me.

"She first talked to me about it sometime in mid-spring. I told her no. She seemed to accept that for a while, and today was the first time she'd said anything else about it," Vaughn muttered unwillingly.

"I do feel a little sorry for her," I told him honestly, "I actually did like her, when she first came here."

Vaughn shrugged. "You can still be friends, if she can get past this."

I nodded. "Yes. Maybe I will."

"Will you talk to her tomorrow?" I asked.

I turned off the light, and darkness was instantly upon us.

"Yes," I heard him say. I snuggled up against him.

"I love you," I murmured.

His reply was the most marvelous in the world. "I love you, too."

***

Vaughn left early the next morning, to do exactly what he said he would. At around noon, I was taking a break from work, and I heard a knock on the door. I opened it, and was surprised to see Regis's daughter standing there, looking shy.

"Hi, Chelsea," she murmured.

"Hey, Sabrina," I said, a bit awkwardly.

"May I come in?"

I nodded and she sat down on my bed, biting her lip nervously. She stared at the floor for a very long time before glancing back up at me.

"So, Vaughn talked to me this morning," she said.

"I know." My tone was brusque.

"Chelsea . . ." Sabrina trailed off.

I sat down beside her and hugged my knees to my chest. "Yes?"

"I . . . I'm sorry. I'm not apologizing for what I did, because I still think I'm right, but I'm sorry for hurting you. I never wanted to do that. I had to try . . ." She sounded terribly sad by the end of her sentence, and pity tugged at my heart.

"It's alright, Sabrina. While I'm not terribly happy with you for your actions, I can understand why you did it."

She smiled slightly at me. "Thank you. I won't . . . interfere anymore. I can see what he wants."

"Thank you."

My first impression of her hand been right. She _was_ a good person.

"I'd really like for us to be friends," I said honestly.

"Yes, I would, too. But I'm going to visit my mother for a few weeks. I'll see you when I get back."

Sabrina stood up and began walking to the door. Just before she closed the door, though, she said one more thing.

"Take care of him."

**A/N: I was going to post this Friday, but the nice people persuaded me otherwise. 3 **


	22. A party and a proposition

_21: A party and a proposition _

Time flew by faster than I would have thought possible, and things were progressing steadily as I'd hoped they would. The hotel was now a grand establishment, and the Island flourished with tourists. I met new interesting people from a place called Mineral Town – they're names were Karen and Popuri.

They were traveling together on vacation and would be here an entire season. I went back to the mine – on a day Vaughn was not on the Island – but not before telling several people first. I made myself focus the entire time I was in there.

I broke rocks with my hammer and found the rickety staircase with my hoe. I got to a floor in the mine where I started finding diamonds and emeralds – jewels that amazed me with their exquisite beauty. But I knew that there were stones even more valuable beneath my feet, some worth thousands.

My fishing skills steadily increased with Denny's help; one day I caught four large fish in a row.

Denny was flabbergasted. "Wow," he said, "I must be seeing things."

I smacked him, and he snickered.

Natalie and Pierre were officially dating now, and she was happier than I had ever seen her. Pierre still irritated me with his non-stop chatter about cooking, but I found he was actually very sweet.

Elliot and Julia were still together and very much in love, or so she told me.

Denny and Lanna had also started going out officially, and Lanna wasn't jealous of me now that she knew for sure I was happily with Vaughn.

Sabrina had gone to visit her mother for a few weeks like she said she would, and I had to admit that I had been a little nervous that she would try something again. But she stuck to her promise. She even had me over for tea one day, and her company was very enjoyable.

When Vaughn was around, she was always very polite, but not flirtatious. It was like nothing had ever happened. Occasionally, I saw her staring longingly at him, but it didn't bother me.

I couldn't judge her for that.

I'd gotten both a birthing pen, and an egg incubator for my farm. I had two more chickens now, so I had six in all. I'd expanded the little fence and they all clucked around happily in the sun. I had a pretty good relationship with Woody, so the little dog felt obligated to protect his territory.

A vicious, wild dog had tried to attack my chickens once when I was putting them back late in the evening after a long day in the mine. Woody had protected them, and gotten hurt himself doing it.

But I'd chased off the wild dog myself with a stick, and then I carried Woody back into the house. He was fine now, though, loyal and happy. Two calves had been born on my farm, and luckily, Vaughn had been here for both of the deliveries, so everything went smoothly. As I had promised, he got to name my second cow.

"Maggie," he'd finally said after a moment.

_I'd_ thought that Bessie was a much better name, but I'd rolled my eyes and agreed.

So now I had the mother cow Bessie and her two calves, Maggie and Milky. ("_Milky_," Vaughn had snorted, "That's worse than Bessie.")

My farm had grown tremendously, and with it came enormous responsibilities. I was tired often, from rising early in the morning and working hard each and every day to take care of the animals and earn money for the Island at the same time.

I'd asked Gannon to build re-build three of the roads so far, and they looked magnificent; I wanted them all to look like that. But each coat two thousand dollars, so I worked harder than ever, passing out in my bed at around eight every night and getting up at six. Vaughn had noticed my exhaustion, and had been worried about it for quite some time now.

"I wish you would take a break," he'd told me, "You're working too hard."

"I'm fine," I'd insisted.

"Hire some help," he suggested.

"Like Mark?" I asked.

His expression darkened. "No."

I'd had Mark over to my farm five or six times to help out, teaching him about crops, animals and everything else. But he flirted with me often suggestively, but never when Vaughn was around.

I'd told him, though, and it was a mistake. Afterwards, he didn't even want Mark coming over anymore, though I'd insisted it was nothing. One hot day in the fall, I was watering my crops when I felt arms around me from behind.

"Hey," I said happily.

Vaughn had come back from working at Mirabelle's. "Hey," he answered, kissing me. "Do you know what today is?"

I thought for a minute, but I came up blank. "Um, no," I admitted.

"It's the anniversary of your coming to this Island. One year ago, to this day, you washed up here," he told me.

"Oh." I hadn't even realized it, but he was right. "Wow," I said, amazed, "I've been doing this for a year."

"And quite well, I might add." He said, smiling. His smiles had become wider, almost flat-out grins, and I loved it.

"The Harvest Festival is coming up soon," I mused, "Good thing I saved some tomatoes from last season."

He made a face. "Hopefully no one ruins it with carrots."

I laughed. "I'm going to Chen's Shop to get a Tool Box," I said, "I've been putting it off forever."

I'd upgraded my house last summer – it looked much more appealing now – and gotten a queen-sized bed. I'd worried at first, about what people would think, what with Vaughn sleeping at my house while he was here, but I'd long since gotten over it.

Who cared what they thought?

"Would you do me a favor and water the rest of _my_ carrots?" I asked sweetly.

Reluctantly, he took the watering can from me. "Yes, I will water the disgusting vegetables. If I were a farmer, I'd have more animals and fewer crops," he said.

"How'd you get to be so big and strong without vegetables?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

He smirked, but didn't answer. "See you soon."

I kissed him, and then began walking towards Main Town.

***

Chen's Shop always had what I needed. And, if it didn't, he'd always order what I needed. On Fridays, when the Shop closed, Chen liked to do two things; his aerobics, and take a long walk around the Island, talking to his customers and seeing what things they needed.

He was good at his job, and if Charlie paid attention, he would be too. Eliza was in the shop with Charlie today; I could hear them in the back rooms. I went up to the shelves and looked for the small version of a Tool Box.

Chen smiled at me. "Morning, Chelsea. What are you looking for?"

"A small tool box," I murmured, still scanning.

My eyes fell upon four strange blue feathers on the shelf. I'd never seen feathers quite like these before; they were long and graceful. "These are very pretty," I said, "How much are they?"

Chen chuckled and came to stand by me.

"What?" I asked, confused by his amusement.

"I will sell you one of these feathers if you really want one, Chelsea, but do you know their purpose?" He asked.

"Um, no." I was more bewildered than ever.

"There's an old tradition in these parts – blue feathers are a symbol of love and commitment. A man gives it to a woman to propose," Chen explained.

A blush colored my cheeks. "What happened to rings?" I murmured.

The old merchant shrugged.

"I like these better anyway," I decided, "They're so pretty. And jewels never really appealed to me."

"Would you still like one? They're two thousand." Chen smirked.

"That's a lot of money," I said, amazed.

"Well, they're from very rare birds. I called in a lot of favors to get them here," Chen muttered.

I raised an eyebrow. "And what made you do that, Chen?"

He blushed slightly and looked away. "Well . . . things are getting kind of serious with some of the couples on this Island, don't you think? I just thought that . . . maybe . . ." He trailed of in embarrassment.

I laughed. "That's thoughtful of you, Chen. No, I don't want to buy one. I'll just take the tool box." I took note that there were _four_ blue feathers.

Four feathers.

Four couples.

Julia and Elliot, Natalie and Pierre, Denny and Lanna, and . . .

"Here's the tool box you wanted, Chelsea," Chen said, holding it up for me to see.

I smiled and gave him the money. "Tell Charlie I said hi," I called politely as I left.

"How was Chen's?" Vaughn asked when I returned.

"Good," I murmured absently, "He got some interesting new products."

***

A little party was being held on the beach next Thursday in my honor.

Originally, it was supposed to be a surprise party, but Julia apparently has difficulty keeping secrets.

"A party?" I asked, shocked, "For me? Why?"

Julia looked appalled with herself for spilling. "Chelsea," she groaned, "You're not supposed to know! Oh, I feel so horrible. I've ruined everything."

"No, you haven't," I comforted her, "Even though I know, I'm sure it will be wonderful. Now tell me, why?"

She sighed. "I guess there's no harm in telling you now. It's to celebrate the anniversary of when you first washed up here, but it's also to celebrate the major success of the Island. But the party's for you because you're really the one who started a new civilization from scratch."

"I couldn't have done it without help," I said truthfully.

Gannon and Taro, to name a few.

"But you didn't quit; you did it, Chelsea, and we're all so proud of you. We wanted to throw a party for you," Julia said, her eyes shining with happiness.

"Whose idea was this?" I asked, "And you do know that the actual anniversary was last Thursday, right? It's Sunday now . . ."

"It was Natalie's – Taro's whole family, actually. And of course Vaughn helped a lot with the organization, but we all helped out. We're having the party next Thursday because, well . . . we didn't get the idea to do it until last Friday. We've all been working hard on everything. I'm helping Pierre with the food – but he's really picky about it, so now I'm deciding on the music," Julia explained.

"We're going to have the party on the beach – Vaughn's going to get you to come down with some sort of pretense. We were going to surprise you." Her face soured. "And it's going to start in the evening – Thursday night is supposed to be nice, like the Starry Night Festival."

"You guys didn't have to do this," I said, blushing.

"I told you, we wanted to. We're like a family, you know?" She laughed.

"Yeah, I guess," I murmured.

"You have to act surprised on Thursday night, okay? You're not going to rat me out, are you?" She asked nervously.

"No, Julia, I won't," I promised, smiling widely.

***

I am not a good actress.

I woke with this worry on Wednesday morning. What if everyone saw that I was only pretending? But did it really matter? I'm supposed to have fun today, I told myself, I won't worry about trivial things like acting.

I had to get up even earlier on Wednesday mornings to meet Vaughn's boat, because I had so many more chores to do. Everyone on the Island always offered to help me, but I didn't want to bother them, so I didn't generally ask. Vaughn usually helped when he wasn't working, though, so it was a bit of relief for me.

I dragged my tired body to the dock just as the boat was pulling up alongside it. Vaughn walked out and kissed me hello sweetly.

"Hi," I said, smiling hugely.

"Hey," he said gruffly.

We walked back to my farmhouse, just like always, hand in hand. We hung out in my farmhouse for most of the morning, but Vaughn had to go to Mirabelle's at noon.

"No," I groaned, kissing his jaw, "Don't go."

He smiled slightly. "Have to make money," he reminded me.

"Stay here," I insisted, "I can make enough for the both of us."

He had the strangest look on his face when he left – a smirk, like I was missing out on some inside joke. I'd ask him about it later when I remembered. On a whim, I went to Chen's, simply because I had a serious craving for chocolate, and Chen almost always had them in stock.

The old merchant wasn't behind the counter, oddly enough, when I got in. I shrugged and walked over to the shelves, searching . . .

My eyes again fell on the beautiful blue feathers. I would love to have one, I thought, and maybe someday I will. I was absorbed in my fantasies for a long time before I noticed something that made my heart hammer in my chest.

There were three feathers for sale lying on the shelf.

Three.

Not four.

So what happened to the fourth? Chen came out from the back rooms of his house just then, and he noticed me staring, dumbfounded.

"What is it, Chelsea?" he asked in alarm.

"Three." I raised my hand to point at them.

He must have thought I was mentally insane, because he nodded very slowly. "Yes. There are three."

"What happened to the fourth?" I asked, hardly daring to breathe.

"Elliot bought one the other day," Chen said smoothly, his eyes twinkling, "He's going to pop the question soon."

I turned away so he couldn't see my look of disappointment. "Aw."

I grabbed a chocolate bar and turned quickly with the money, nearly shoving it into his hands. While I was truly disappointed, I was happy for Julia. The two of them were honestly happy together, and I wanted nothing but the best for her.

Both Natalie and Julia had been like sisters to me in the past year; even Lanna was starting to grow on me. They all deserved the best. Sabrina does, too, a small voice whispered in my head. Maybe I could get Mark interested . . .

"Chelsea," I heard Vaughn's voice call.

He hurried up to me.

"Yes?" I asked, surprised to see him.

"I'm . . . I'm going to take today and tomorrow off work," he told me.

I blinked. "Really?" I asked, intertwining my fingers with his.

"Really." He smiled.

We walked through the Forest together, and I didn't even mind when we ran into Witch Princess; I'd actually grown quite fond of her, though she still scared me to death. We passed the church and the Harvest Goddess' pond, and it struck me that she hadn't come to 'visit' me in a dream for quite some time.

In fact, I hadn't seen her at all last season. I hadn't seen her since the whole Sabrina episode. Why? Vaughn didn't want to stop at the pond, though; he really wasn't into the whole Harvest Goddess idea.

He made me go to bed early that night, promising to do my evening chores. "You're tired," he said, kissing my forehead, "Now go to sleep."

When he had gone outside, I thought about some things. I thought about the difference in him from when I first met him and now.

He'd been so cold, so rude to me when we'd first met. And now, he was the most loving person to me I'd ever met. I marveled at the change, and thought about how lucky I was to have him. I would be content to spend the rest of my life with him.

And perhaps I would.

***

The morning and afternoon of Thursday passed in a blur. Vaughn did most of everything for me that day, and he wouldn't let me out of the house. "I just want to take a walk," I complained, feeling like I was injured all over again.

"Why can't you just stay here with me?" He frowned.

"Why don't you want to me to leave?" I challenged.

He sighed, exasperated. "Just sit down, Chelsea. Relax. For me."

"Well, when you put it like that . . ." I sat down in my little chair, and Woody hopped in my lap. I figured he wouldn't let me leave because everyone was down at the beach, setting things up, but it sure was fun to tease him.

When four o' clock rolled around, Vaughn said suddenly, "Let's go the beach."

"Why?" I asked innocently.

"It's a nice night. It'll be even better near the ocean," he told me, getting my light jacket out from the closet.

I put it on and followed him out of the house without comment. We walked swiftly in silence to the beach, Vaughn biting his lip the whole way there.

The first thing I noticed at the beach was the light. Small, but beautiful little candles were placed everywhere in little dishes in the sand. There was no wind to blow them out, and they were stunning combined with the light of the moon and the stars. Further away, I could see two long tables with plates and dishes of all sorts.

Next to that was a fairly expensive-looking stereo. I didn't see a soul when I looked around, though . . . And then suddenly they were there, all of them, every person who lived on this Island. They came running out from behind Denny's house, smiling and yelling "Surprise!" in loud voices.

I put a hand over my heart and let my mouth fall open a little.

"Wow – what's all this?" I asked, in what I hoped was a confused and excited voice.

Pierre stepped forward with Natalie on his arm. "It's a part for you," She said, smiling. "Celebrating the anniversary of us washing up on this Island, and the success of it now!"

"But it's mostly for you, Chelsea," Pierre said, almost proudly, "You're really the one who did all this."

"This is so sweet, you guys," I gushed.

Natalie made a dismissive gesture. "Shut up; we're celebrating whether you want to or not. Lanna, turn on the music!" She barked.

Lanna smiled and hurried over to the stereo, finding a station that played 'Today's Music'.

Vaughn took me through every person on individually; they congratulated me and then went back to dancing or eating or whatever. A big sign was hung across Denny's house that read 'Congratulations, Chelsea'.

In this moment, it felt like we all really were a big family, a very weird, slightly demented family. Taro was the last to approach me, smiling widely.

"Congrats, little missy," he said approvingly.

"Thank you, Taro, but I couldn't have done it without you," I said.

"Dang right you couldn't. But I'm proud of you. You've done well." Taro walked away then, towards his daughter, who was talking to Chen.

"Alright, who told you?" Vaughn whispered in my ear when everyone was doing their own thing.

"Told me what?" I asked, averting my eyes.

"Who told you about the party?"

"No one," I lied.

"Who did it?" He pushed.

"Julia," I mumbled, caving.

Vaughn snorted. "My cousin can't keep a secret."

"I'm glad she told me," I defended her, "I probably would have had a heart attack from shock. But how did you know I was faking?"

"I know you, Chelsea," Vaughn said in a tone that implied it should be obvious, "I know when you're being real and when you're not."

I smiled and wrapped my arms around his neck. "Want to dance?" I asked; a slow, romantic song was on now, and the other couples had already started.

Charlie and Eliza were even trying to; they did look sweet together.

"Alright."

We danced slowly for a while with my head on his shoulder.

"I love you," I murmured.

"I love you, too." He sounded slightly nervous.

"Something wrong?" I asked.

"Um, no," he said.

I lifted my head. His expression was nervous, too. "What is it?" I pressed.

He bit his lip, glanced to the left, and then the right, as if checking for eavesdroppers. "Come with me," he said abruptly.

He walked me to the far end of the beach, away from the light and the part, behind seaweed rock. Though the candles were gone, I could see him in the moonlight; it was very romantic. I didn't know if he just brought me back here to talk or make out, but I preferred the latter.

I kissed him roughly and pressed him back against the rock; his lips were hesitant. I pulled away, annoyed. "What _is_ it, Vaughn?"

"I . . ." He sucked in a deep breath, and when he spoke again, his words were rushed. "I was going to do this in front of everyone – get over my social issues, you know – but nerves got the better of me, so I'll do it now."

He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a box that looked to be about the right size for a necklace.

I smiled at his thoughtfulness.

"Thank you, Vaughn, but you know I don't need jewelry."

He smiled at me slightly. "This isn't jewelry," he said lowly.

Never taking his eyes from mine, he lifted the lid and pulled out the box's contents. I gasped, and my heart skipped a beat. He was holding up one the beautiful blue feathers Chen had been selling.

Elliot hadn't bought one at all.

Chen _lied_ to me.

But I couldn't bring myself to be angry. I couldn't think past the shock and joy that was exploding inside me. I reached up and took the feather from his hands and stared at its beauty for a moment. Then I looked back at him.

"Do you . . . do you know what this feather means?" He asked, swallowing heavily.

"Yes. I do," I whispered softly.

He looked surprised at that for a moment, but then his expression became serious and his hands came up to hold both sides of my face. He swallowed once more and stared.

"Marry me."

My heart inflated, blocking my throat, leaving me speechless. He misread my silence and frowned. But then I broke into the widest grin ever and threw my arms around him.

"Yes," I said, kissing his neck, his jaw, his cheek. "Yes!"

I was positive that a lot of people would be able to hear me across the beach, but I didn't even care. I was lost in my joy, choked with it. This was everything I'd ever wanted. My dream had been to start a successful farm, but along the way I had re-built a civilization and fallen in love.

If someone had told me I would be so happy one year ago, I would have snorted and told them they were crazy. I would have scoffed at the very idea, because it was so unbelievable. But this was real. It was happening. I was getting everything I had ever wanted.

This whole thing felt like the most marvelous dream.

And I was never going to wake up.

**A/N: Do you think that was sappy? I think that's how Vaughn might propose. I wish the guys proposed to the girls in the actual game, even if you're playing as Chelsea. There's about five more chapters until my story reaches its inevitable conclusion. :( **


	23. Preparations

_21: Preparations _

"Should I have gotten a ring?" Vaughn asked as we walked back towards the party.

"No, I like the feather," I said, "I usually lose rings, and bracelets for that matter."

"We should have them anyway," he insisted, "for the ceremony."

"If you want." I shrugged. I didn't mind. All I could feel was utter joy; the feeling consumed me.

"Who should we tell first?" I asked.

"Mirabelle and Julia," he said firmly.

Elliot and Julia were apart from Mirabelle, unfortunately, standing close by Denny's house, staring at each other with goo-goo eyes.

"Julia," I called as we approached, trying to sound casual.

She turned to look at me reluctantly. "Hey, Chelsea. Are you having fun?"

"Yes." I smiled widely, and Vaughn smirked.

"Hey, Elliot," I said politely.

"Hi, Chelsea," Elliot replied, "Hey, Vaughn."

My fiancé (my heart squeezed at the word) nodded once in his direction.

"So, I have some news," I said, still casual.

"Oh? What?" Julia asked curiously.

I'd been holding the feather behind my back in the hand that wasn't holding Vaughn's, but I showed it to her now; it looked so pretty in the candlelight. Julia gaped at it for several minutes, seemingly speechless.

"What?" Elliot asked, confused, "It's a nice-looking feather. But what does it mean?"

"It's a tradition around here – an odd one, I'll admit, but . . ." Julia managed to say.

"What does it mean?" Elliot repeated, a little frustrated now.

"It's like a ring. You give it to someone to propose."

Elliot's eyes widened, and then they flickered between the two of us. "You're getting married?" He finally asked.

"Yes." My happiness was evident in my tone.

Julia threw her arms around me without warning. "I hoped this would happen," she whispered in my ear, "He's been so unhappy for so long. But I know he'll be happy with you. And you get to be my cousin-in-law!" She pulled back and hugged Vaughn.

He blushed, but raised up one hand to pat her back awkwardly.

"This is so great," Julia said, "I didn't ever think you'd get married. But I'm so happy to be wrong."

"Congratulations, guys," Elliot said genuinely, "When will the ceremony be?"

I shrugged and glanced at Vaughn. "When should it be?"

He smiled slightly, his eyes gleaming. "Very, very soon. I've already given my notice for my job."

I blinked, a bit shocked by this. "You already quit? What if I had said no?" I asked jokingly.

"I was pretty sure you wouldn't," he replied smugly.

"Aren't you presumptuous?" I slapped his arm, but he only smiled.

"Seriously, though, when?" I probed.

"Next Thursday. I have to be in the city until then – things to pack and loose ends to tie, you know," he said.

"Oh," I grumbled gloomily.

"But it will be the last time," he assured me, "And then I'll always be here."

"Yes." I smiled widely. "Always."

"Come on; we have to tell my mom!" Julia grabbed my hand and towed me toward the ocean's edge, where Mirabelle stood, talking to Felicia.

Vaughn followed behind, still holding my hand.

Julia wasted no time getting to the point. She all but shoved me forward and cried, "Look what Chelsea has!"

Mirabelle and Felicia blinked at the sudden interruption, but their eyes focusing on the object I held willingly enough.

Mirabelle's gaze lingered on it for a long time before she looked up with a loving smile.

"A blue feather," Felicia breathed, "Does that mean what I think it means?"

"Yes," I said.

Mirabelle wordlessly pulled me in for a hug. "Welcome to this family," she said, "Though it's like you were already in it. I know this is for the best. I know you'll be happy with him."

"I will," I agreed, "I'm . . . ecstatic."

When Mirabelle pulled away, I saw a few tears were pooling in her eyes.

"Don't, Mirabelle," Vaughn groaned, "This is good news, right?"

"I know. But I'm so happy," his Aunt said.

Felicia was just as delighted. "As am I."

We went to every person there after that, spreading the news.

Denny smiled widely when we told him. "Tying the knot, huh?" He asked Vaughn jokingly.

"Yeah." Vaughn smiled.

"Maybe I'll do that soon," Denny said, his eyes flickering over to Lanna, who was out of earshot.

When approached Chen next, who stood along by the food.

"You lied to me," I said, pretending to be annoyed.

He looked a bit startled by my statement. "Did I?" He asked, bewildered.

I held up the feather, and then he understood. "Oh. Well, yes. I didn't want to give him away," Chen said, gesturing to Vaughn.

"What's this about?" Vaughn wanted to know.

I explained how there had been one less feather for sale yesterday.

"Aw. Well, um, thanks," Vaughn said to the merchant sincerely.

The last person we told was Sabrina.

"That's great, Chelsea," she said after we'd told.

She sounded sincere, but her eyes were tight and a bit sad. "I'm so happy for you."

"Thanks, Sabrina," I said, squeezing her hand, "That means a lot to me – err, us."

Vaughn nodded, smiling a little at her.

The party ended at around eight, and I thanked everyone there before we left and announced the date of the ceremony.

"I'll alert Nathan and Alisa," Taro said, "They'll have everything ready."

"Thanks, Taro," I said gratefully.

"Come over to my house early tomorrow morning, after you do your chores," Natalie ordered firmly, though her smile was kind.

"Why?" I asked.

"You'll see. Just do it."

I didn't question it further. "Alright." I shrugged. "Goodbye, everyone. This meant to much to me."

Most of them called out a goodbye to be, and then Vaughn and I began walking to my farmhouse.

"I guess there won't be a need for invitations, huh?" I joked.

"Nope."

"Are you staying on the Island tonight?"

"No, I have to get back. I'll see you Wednesday, though," he answered.

Our hands swung as we walked, and I felt so carefree. "I can't believe this is happening. It's surreal," I murmured.

"Why?" he asked as we entered my house.

"I never pictured rebuilding a civilization, starting a farm and falling in love. And I did it in one year," I said proudly.

"Yes, it's been quite eventful. I never exactly imagined this, either. But I want to marry you."

I smiled at him as he packed his things. I really wished he wouldn't go, but the time came much too soon as always. He was about to board the boat now; we stood on the dock, in a light rain.

"I love you," I said, "I can't wait until next week."

"I love you, too." He kissed me for a while, and then pulled away reluctantly. "Bye."

And then he was gone, just like that.

"Just one week," I told myself.

***

I honestly had no idea why Natalie wanted me to come over so early in the morning. Maybe she just wanted to hang out; we hadn't been doing that much, since I'd spent so much time with Vaughn and she was usually at Pierre's.

But I got the feeling she was planning something. I walked swiftly to her house the next morning, whistling merrily. The door opened before I had a chance to knock, and Natalie all but drug me in.

Surprisingly, Julia, Lanna and Sabrina were all sitting around Nat's small family table.

"Uh, hi," I said to them, "What's going on?"

"We're going to the city today," Natalie answered nonchalantly.

"Why?" I asked, shocked.

I hadn't been off the Island in a year – it was my small part of the world, and the rest of it seemed distant now, unreal.

"To get a wedding dress, Chelsea, keep up," Natalie said briskly, pulling on a coat. "The next boat will be coming in about fifteen minutes, so we'd better get down to the beach."

"We'll all have fun, Chelsea," Julia insisted, "Shopping is fun."

"Yeah," Lanna put in, "I have excellent taste in clothes. Though I've never shopped for a wedding dress before . . ." She smiled slightly to herself.

Sabrina stood and smiled at me. "I'm going to come, too, Chelsea, if you don't mind."

"No," I said honestly, "But – but will you be okay?"

"Yes. I . . . I'm getting over it. This will help me, I think. Besides, friends go shopping together right?"

"Yes." My answered smile was huge.

The four of us hurried down to the beach, and Lanna had to say an extensively long goodbye to Denny before we could even board.

"Hey, watch the tongue," Natalie snapped, pulling on her arm, "We've got to go."

Lanna chuckled and pulled away.

This boat was fancier and sturdier than the last one I'd been on; it was easy to feel safe here. But it still felt so odd to be off the Island, especially after we sailed so far away it was merely a speck on the horizon.

"This is weird, isn't it? Being away from there?" Julia said, voicing my thoughts.

"Yeah. We need to get out more often," Lanna laughed.

"I think I'll go inside," Sabrina said, "I get a little seasick." Her face did look a little green.

"I'll come," Lanna said, "Need something to eat anyway."

***

The city was the same as I remembered; noisy, crowded and hugely populated.

"Ugh," I muttered as we piled into a taxi, "It's easy to remember why I wanted to leave this place."

"Really? I love the city," Lanna gushed, "I have a lot of fans here."

"Why didn't you keep going with the pop star thing?" Natalie wondered, "If you were so popular."

Lanna looked away, and bit her lip. "I'd rather not talk about it."

"I've lived in the city most of my life," Sabrina said, thankfully changing the subject, "The Island's much more peaceful, but living here does have its advantages."

We continued to talk about the city until we reached a store that was completely centered on weddings. "I know this place," Lanna said, "I used to see it often when I was driving around."

We divided up the taxi fee and went inside. My mouth nearly fell open at the sight of so many beautiful dresses hanging up.

"There are so many," Julia breathed, "How will we ever decide?"

"We'll just have to look. Here's what we're going to do," Natalie said with authority in her voice, "We'll split up. Each of us will pick out a couple dresses we think Chelsea might like, and we meet up outside the doors of the dressing room in about twenty minutes."

No one seemed to find any fault in her plan. The four of us drifted apart and began looking. Each and every dress was a work of art and could fittingly be called a masterpiece.

But the most amazing thing was the price tags that came with them. How could I ever afford one? I didn't think about that for the moment, though; I just began looking, occasionally touching a veil or a skirt.

Fifteen minutes had passed, and I still hadn't decided. I ended up bringing a very simple one, long and strapless, but still very beautiful. Natalie, Julia, Sabrina and Lanna were already there. Natalie had about three dresses, Julia one, Sabrina one and Lanna six.

"Six? Really?" I asked.

She shrugged. "I saw a bunch I liked, okay?"

Aside from the huge room that held all the dresses, there was also a room that led into a wide open space with a huge floor-length mirror, which is where we went. We settled on the expensive-looking chairs and lay out all the dresses.

Most of Lanna's choices were fairly skimpy; they showed too much skin for my taste. I told her so, and she snorted.

"_I _think they're marvelous. But whatever. I'm getting this one when I marry my fisherman, though," she said, holding up what I thought to be the worst of the bunch.

"You sound pretty sure of yourself, Lanna," Julia snickered.

"When you know, you know. You'll all be doing this for me," the pop star declared.

"And me," Julia put in, "Elliot has to ask sooner or later."

"Are you sure?" I smirked. "He might chicken out."

"If he does, then _I'll_ ask _him_," Julia shot back, "There's nothing wrong with that."

"We'll find a dress for me, too," Natalie said, "Pierre and I haven't been dating long, but . . . I think he's it."

Our eyes rested on Sabrina.

"We'll do it for you, too, moneybags," Natalie said, smiling at the nickname.

Sabrina smiled shyly. "Thank you," she murmured, biting her lip and looking away.

"I . . . have you met Mark, Sabrina?" I couldn't help but ask, "He's really sweet. You might like him."

She smiled at me, fidgeting. "Maybe," she agreed softly.

"Chelsea can set you up when we get back," Julia said, "She's right – he's really nice." She shoved her dress of choice at me. "Pick this one, Chelsea – it's perfect, right?"

The sleeves were very loose; they would hang around my wrists at the end, and the neckline was low enough to show a bit of cleavage, but nothing too revealing. The veil was very pretty. I set it aside, in the 'maybe' pile.

Natalie had three dresses to show me, and they were wonderful as well, but I couldn't really picture myself in any of them.

"Why not?" Natalie complained.

I shrugged. "_My_ wedding, _my _choice," I reminded her.

She bit her lip and muttered unintelligible things.

Sabrina shyly showed me her dress of choice. Surprisingly, it was a bit-old fashioned, with a neckline that came up to my collarbone and glittering white flowers embroidered on the sleeves.

The gown was long and beautiful, and the veil had the same flowers to match. "I like this one," I breathed.

"Really?" Sabrina seemed surprised. "I really like it, too. I'm a bit old-fashioned, you know, and that's really pretty."

Lanna shrugged. "Nothing _I'd _get married in, but yes, pretty enough."

A saleswoman approached us with a snide, I'm-better-than-you look. "Can I help you?" She asked, her tone professional.

"No, we're fine," I said politely, ignoring her rudeness.

"Yeah; beat it," Natalie snapped bluntly.

The saleswoman glared at her, but left quickly.

"I hate people like that," Natalie grumbled, "Think they're so superior."

"I used to be like that," Lanna confessed, "But I like to think I'm more modest now."

"Fame does that to people," Julia said.

I looked at the price tag for the dress and groaned. "I can't afford this."

"We'll all chip in," Natalie said.

"I don't want you to," I insisted, "You shouldn't have to."

I set the dress aside. "I don't need it. I'm sure I can find something else."

"Off the _rack?_" Julia asked in horror.

We bickered about it for several minutes, until I noticed that the dress was no longer lying next to me.

"What – what happened to it?" I asked.

Now that the arguments had stopped, I noticed that Sabrina had also disappeared. "Where'd Sabrina go?" Lanna asked, looking around.

We all got to our feet and walked back into the huge room where all the dresses were. As my eyes scanned the store, I finally located Sabrina. She was walking towards us; the dress and veil were in one of those long, protective bags with the store's name scrawled across it in fancy letters.

Sabrina smiled gently and held the bag out to me. "I bought it," she said, "for you."

"What?" I asked, amazed.

I took the bag from her, holding it carefully. "I . . . you didn't have to do that, Sabrina. I'm going to pay you back."

She shook her head. "No – it's a gift. I want you to have it. Everyone should have the dress they really want on their wedding day."

I was shocked at her action. Even after things had been so well for us, a small part of me believed she wasn't over Vaughn, not with the sadness in her eyes when I spoke of him. But now she had bought me this, out of kindness.

"Thank you, Sabrina." I smiled. "This means so much to me."

"Yeah, it was real nice of you," Natalie said, "Though the rest of us look bad."

Julia snickered. "It's not our fault she snuck away to pay. C'mon, let's go."

***

They made me go to a jewelry store. Against my will.

"I don't want to," I whined.

"Stop acting like we're torturing you. I expect all this crap when I get married," Natalie said as we entered the store. "Besides, if it bothers you so much, we'll only get a hair clip or something. They sell stuff like that, too."

"Alright," I said, settling.

I actually got a little package of small white, sparkling clips that you pinned everywhere into your hair. Julia and Lanna insisted it would go marvelously with the dress. Lanna bought this for me before I could stop her.

Once we stood back on the street, Natalie glanced at her watch. "We've still got two hours before the boat comes to take us back. Want to get lunch?"

We ate at some little Café and I got a Panini (it was delicious). I insisted on paying for lunch, and they actually let me.

"Thanks for doing this, guys," I said, "I promise to make it just as special for each of you."

We still had an hour to kill before the boat after lunch, so we wandered into a random store, where Lanna bought a pretty spring dress and Julia got some dangly earrings.

The boat ride back was very uneventful, though everyone commented that it was nice to visit the city for a short period of time.

After I bid them goodbye I went back to my farmhouse and hung up the dress. As I sat down, a familiar shape formed before my eyes.

"Hey, El." I hadn't seen much of him lately. Sure, he'd popped up a few times last summer, but never for long.

"You've been gone a lot lately, haven't you?" I asked.

He shrugged. "Been busy. I heard the news, though."

"And . . . ?" I asked, raising an eyebrow questioningly.

"And if he's who you want . . . then I guess I have to live with it." The little Harvest Sprite glanced up at me, amusement in his eyes.

"Wow, _thanks._" I rolled my eyes.

"After what happened last summer with the rich girl," El muttered, "I would have thought you'd end things with him."

"It was . . . an unpleasant time, yes, but everything's alright now. She bought my wedding dress for me," I told him, my voice slightly awed.

"Weren't you angry with him?" El asked, a bit exasperated.

"Yes. But that whole thing doesn't matter anymore. Don't talk about it," I snapped.

He held up his hands, surrendering. "Fine, sorry."

"Now, if you'll excuse me."

I got into bed and turned off the light without another word. I wasn't sure if he disappeared after that – it was too dark. But after a while I no longer cared. I fell asleep quickly, tired after my city-trip, dreaming of what was to take place next week.

***

I went to the church the next afternoon to confirm Taro had talked to Nathan and Alisa about the ceremony. I ran into Witch Princess on my way through the forest.

"Afternoon, Chelsea." She nodded. "Haven't seen you in a while."

"No, I guess not. How've you been?" I asked.

Though she still did creep me out, I'd grown rather fond of the witch and I knew she wouldn't ever hurt me.

"All is well. Rather boring, but well." She shrugged.

"I'm getting married," I said joyously.

She raised an eyebrow. "Oh? To whom?"

"Vaughn. You met him once – remember?"

"Yes. Well, congratulations." Witch Princess sounded sincere, though her eyes were slightly annoyed.

"Would you like to come?" I asked.

"I would, but I'm not comfortable getting that close to the church, and the Harvest Goddess' pond. Come with me." Very abruptly, she turned and started walking into the woods.

I blinked for a second, unsure. But I hurried quickly after her after a second of thought.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"My house," she answered.

The pink house was a lot bigger than I'd originally thought – it wasn't huge like Regis's mansion, but much bigger than the little homes of the other Islanders. The inside was confusing, however. Strewn all over the floor were stuffed bears, and the back wall was completely covered by bookshelves with the thickest books I'd ever seen.

I wanted to get closer and read the titles, but I thought that would be rude. "So . . . bears?" I asked as she went over to a small trunk.

She closed her eyes, muttered something, and the sturdy lock that had been holding the trunk closed popped open. "Yes, I love bears. They're quite wonderful, aren't they?"

"Um . . . yes," I said, though _wonderful_ wasn't the first word I'd use.

She reached into the trunk and pulled out what looked like a piece of lumber. Only this lumber was heavier and a brilliant yellow color. She handed it to me, and I staggered a little under the weight.

"What is this?" I asked.

"Golden lumber. Do what you want with it – it would sell for a high price." Witch Princess smirked.

"I didn't know there was such a thing," I said.

"There is. Consider it an early wedding gift."

I was awed her generosity. She saw my expression, and her eyes narrowed slightly. "Don't go telling people about this – I'm not generous often."

"I won't," I promised, "But I really appreciate it, Witch Princess."

"Yes, yes, go on then," she said.

I set the valuable lumber down. "Could I leave it here for a little while? I have to go talk to Nathan and Alisa."

She frowned. "There you go, ruining my good mood."

I chuckled. "Sorry. Could I, though? I'll pick it up on my way back."

"Very well. Goodbye."

***

"Yes, Taro's told us everything about it. We're so happy for you!" Nathan cried when I asked him in the church.

"I hadn't realized you were so serious," Alisa said, "But I, too, am happy for you. We look forward to the ceremony next week."

"Me too," I said eagerly, "This whole thing is amazing."

"Do you have proper attire?" Nathan asked, "That's important."

"Yeah – I went to the city only yesterday," I answered, sure my face was glowing.

"Then it's all set. We'll see you very soon."

**A/N: I finally finished this story (on my computer, not this website). *phew*. 100,000 words is a lot for me. My updates will probably be very often; I want to get the whole story up. **


	24. Wedding

_23: Wedding_

The whole week seemed to go by agonizingly slowly, but Natalie and my other friends helped things with their support.

"Just four more days, Chelsea," Lanna told me on Sunday.

"Three more days, Chelsea," said Julia merrily on Monday.

This particular pattern continued until Wednesday evening. I sat with Mirabelle and her daughter at their table, eating dinner, trying to ignore the butterflies that assaulted my stomach.

"When will Vaughn be here?" I asked.

"He'll arrive on the Island at six on a boat," Julia replied, "But you're not to go see him."

"Why not?" I demanded.

"You're not supposed to see him until the wedding, dear," Mirabelle said gently, "It's a tradition."

"A stupid one," I grumbled.

"Denny and Elliot are going to help get Vaughn all handsome for you," Julia snickered.

"He's always handsome," I argued, "Though I wish he'd get rid of that awful hat."

"We'll make sure he doesn't wear it during the ceremony, honey," Mirabelle said, smirking.

"Natalie's staying over at your house tonight, so don't get ideas about sneaking out tomorrow morning, but she's on guard duty," Julia threatened.

"Everything will go wonderfully well tomorrow, Chelsea," Mirabelle said, "I just know it."

***

"Going somewhere?" Natalie sat on my sofa the next morning with one eyebrow raised.

I froze by the door, horrified at being caught. I'd thought that maybe, if I could just sneak out early enough, I would be able to meet him before the wedding. I'd gotten up at _four thirty_ and quietly had my coffee before attempting my escape.

Now it was foiled.

"Nowhere," I grumbled, walking back to my bed and kicking off my shoes.

"Chelsea," Natalie groaned, "I'm going back to sleep. If you try to sneak out again" – she paused to yawn – "I'll kick you all the way to the church."

I rolled my eyes and fell back onto my pillow. "I want to see him," I complained.

"Go to sleep," Natalie ordered.

I was going to wait until she fell and asleep and sneak again, but I _was_ rather tired. And I didn't want to pass out from lack of energy at the alter . . .

***

Natalie woke me up at ten.

"My chores," I said frantically. "I had Mirabelle and Taro take care of that. You don't have to worry about work on your wedding day!"

Behind her, I saw Julia, Lanna, and Sabina, all staring at me.

"The ceremony starts at one o' clock, so we have until then to make you beautiful," Julia said, "Well, more than you already are."

I smiled at her flattery. "I'm getting married today," I couldn't help but say. I'd known it all week, but it was only just beginning to hit me . . .

"Ding dong, we have a winner," Natalie said snidely as she took the dress out of my closet.

I made a face at her.

"I didn't know if you had any proper shoes, but I thought these might work." Lanna showed me a pair of dainty white heels.

"Perfect." Sabrina nodded.

"Just right," I approved.

They took me to the church soon after that. "Where's Vaughn getting ready at?" I asked.

"He's here, too, in another room," Lanna said.

My heart squeezed at that.

"Sit," Julia ordered.

I sat in front of a huge table with a mirror hung on the wall immediately behind it. All four of them worked simultaneously worked on my hair, something snapping at each other or insisting it should be done "this way".

My mind wasn't focused on their conversation, though – I was off in my own little word, completely at peace. I felt them buffering and powdering my face.

"Not too much makeup," I said, "I don't want to feel like I'm wearing a mask."

"Shush," Natalie snapped, "You're not going to care when we're done with you."

I shut up after that and let them do whatever. I couldn't help blinking and cringing when Lanna tried to put the eyeliner on.

"I'm not going to poke you," she said, irritated.

"I know," I mumbled, embarrassed, "But it's reflex."

Sabrina was much nicer with the mascara, pausing every time I flinched or blinked. When she was done, Julia went to fetch the hair clips, which we'd forgotten. They had to mess around with my hair again for a while.

"We're done," Lanna said finally.

I opened my eyes and stared at the mirror in front of me.

"Wow," I murmured, reaching up to touch my cheek.

I didn't have a mask on, not at all – they'd put on a lot less than I'd thought, but enough to highlight natural beauty. The clips were placed elegantly in my hair in all the right places. I was very pretty, even beautiful, at this moment, and I smiled at all four of them warmly.

"Thanks so much. I love it."

They eased the dress on over the hair and makeup, and it was just as stunning. "I'm glad I picked this one," I said, spinning slowly around, smiling slightly.

"Me too," Sabrina said quietly.

Natalie looked at her watch. "It's about twelve. Julia and I have to go and change."

I'd asked Natalie to be my maid of honor, and Julia was a second bridesmaid. Lanna and Sabrina were perfectly contempt to sit and watch the ceremony from the seats. If I listened closely, I could hear the sound of the church door opening and voices floating about.

"How many people came?" I wondered. "

Almost everyone on the Island," Sabrina replied, "My father and I are sitting in the back."

"I'm going to my seat now, Chelsea - I have to sit alone, since Denny is the best man. You look marvelous." Lanna hugged me tightly before walking quickly out the door.

"I should be going, too," Sabrina murmured, turning.

"Sabrina," I said.

She looked at me curiously. "Yes?"

"I'm . . . I'm glad we could settle this. I know this whole thing must be hard for you, but you know I appreciate it."

"It is hard," she agreed, "but, like I said, I . . . I'm your friend, and I want you to be happy. I know that he'll be happy, too. So I'm happy." She couldn't hide the melancholy completely from her eyes. She turned and then left without another word.

Julia and Natalie were back in record time, with long silvery dresses and light makeup.

"You guys are stunning," I complimented them.

Julia rolled her eyes. "That doesn't matter today. People will be looking at _you_."

"But thanks," Natalie added.

The voices from the main room grew more noticeable as time passed, and I grew nervous.

"It's going to be fine, Chelsea," Natalie said, seeing my expression, "You're not going to run away, are you?"

"No," I breathed, "No, I'm fine."

One o' clock arrived faster than I would have thought possible, and soon a traditional wedding march was emitting from some hidden place in the church. We stood in the hall of the back rooms.

Natalie held a beautiful bouquet of flowers, and she sucked in a deep breath.

"I go first. Julia, count to ten and then follow me," she murmured.

She drew another deep breath, and began the walk down the aisle. Julia squeezed my hand and counted to ten under her breath. When her countdown was over, she held her own bouquet to her chest and began her walk. With my heart pounding faster than ever, I began counting.

"One." I swallowed hard.

"Two, three, four."

I bit the inside of my cheek. "Five, six, seven."

I walked a bit closer to the doorway. "Eight . . . nine . . . ten."

I began a slow walk down the aisle, in synchronization with the music. Everyone in every seat turned to stare; it looked like _everyone _was here. My eyes only swept the seats for a short period of time, though. I looked straight forward, to where Natalie, Julia, Denny, Nathan and Alisa stood. I barely noticed them.

Vaughn stood in front of Nathan, his eyes on me, a small smile on his lips. He was dashing in a tuxedo, and his hat was gone, his hair combed and almost shining in the bright lights. His gaze was loving and kind.

I walked more quickly than I should have, in my hurry to get to him. I was sure I was smiling, too, as I took his hand and stood next to him in front of Nathan. The music faded away and there was absolute silence as Nathan put his hands together and smiled.

"Friends, we are gathered here today join together this man and this woman in holy matrimony." Nathan's smile was still there, but his voice was completely serious. "Truly, we are blessed to witness such a wonderful occasion."

He paused, and then Alisa spoke up. "If there is anyone present who believes these two should not be wed, speak now or forever hold your peace."

I didn't stiffen, or get nervous in any way. Sabrina would never. I knew she wouldn't. It was dead silent in the church again.

Alisa nodded, satisfied. "Good. Now we will begin."

The vows we said were the usual ones, the ones that had been repeated by millions of couples throughout history. A single tear fell from my eyes when I said "I do".

"I do," Vaughn said, his voice firm and sure, when it was his turn.

Nathan nodded once. "I pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride."

Our kiss was sweet and chaste, as there were many people watching.

But they all applauded; Denny even whistled. Smiling, Vaughn took my hand and we wall walked out of the church.

"So many people came," he murmured, "I'm surprised . . . and happy."

"Me too," I said.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, the huge and elegant bell that stood next to the church rang once, a defeating echoing chime. Nathan and Alisa, who had come out of the church, smiled at the same time.

"That's the bell," Alisa said, "It means the both of you are meant for a long life of love and happiness."

I smiled, and out of the corner of my eye I saw something I hadn't in a while. The glittering green smoke and sparkles appeared out of thin air, and the Harvest Goddess stepped out of it, smiling.

"Congratulations, Chelsea. I told you that you would find happiness."

"Yes," I whispered lowly, "Thank you."

She smiled, and vanished quickly with a ghostly chuckle.

***

The reception was held in Regis's mansion. Sabrina had to beg her father, but eventually he caved. The Islanders had worked hard on decorating the ballroom with expensive lights and dancing music.

Pierre had prepared most of the food (of course), and he'd made the most marvelous cake – it stood very high, and there were two plastic people in wedding clothes standing on top. I giggled at that.

"You're cake looks great, Pierre," I complimented him when we were all in the grand ballroom.

The little chef licked his lips. "Yes, well, just wait until you eat it," he said proudly.

Music once again fell from the hidden speakers, but it was softer, more melodic the housewarming party's.

Vaughn held out his gloveless hand for me to take. "Care to dance?"

I smiled and he walked me away from food to the dance floor. The other couples tried dancing too – Elliot's clumsiness was fun to watch from the corner of my eye. I leaned my head against his chest.

"Feel different?" I murmured.

"Not at all," he replied truthfully, "But things will be different now."

There was a comfortable silence as we danced. "My boss asked me if I'd still work on Wednesdays, and I said yes," he said.

I looked up at him and made a face. "So I won't see you then?" I asked, sour.

"It's only one day out of the week," he reminded me.

"Alright," I agreed unhappily.

He kissed my forehead. "Thank you."

Regis herded us all into his huge dining room, where dinner was served. Everyone told Pierre how awesome his dishes were. The little chef blushed and clutched Natalie's hand.

"Did you want to go somewhere soon?" Vaughn asked while everyone chatted around the table.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Well, you know, the tradition of a honeymoon . . ." He blushed slightly.

I snickered. "I don't need one. But do you?"

"Nope. Just wondered if you did."

Denny stood then and gave a little best-man speech; he had everyone in the room in stitches, just as I'd known he would.

"But all jokes aside," Denny said, near the end of his little spiel, "I wish the best for you guys. We all do." He gestured to everyone at the table, and they nodded in agreement. Denny sat down then and went back to stuffing his face with salmon.

The evening was coming to a close after the meal; people began to leave.

"We should get back home," Lanna said, clutching Denny's arm and smiling warmly.

"_We?_" I asked.

Lanna wiggled her eyebrows suggestively, and I chuckled.

"Goodbye, cousin-in-law," Julia said after a tight hug.

She turned to my husband. "So I guess you'll be living on the Island now, huh? I get to see you much more often."

Vaughn made a face. "Yeah – that was one of the reasons I didn't propose sooner."

She smacked him lightly.

"Bye, dears," Mirabelle said, kissing my cheek.

Almost everyone dispersed after that; we thanked Sabrina and Regis for letting us use their home.

"You're welcome," Sabrina said, smiling slightly.

"Yes – you can make this up to us by mining more often," Regis said.

Sabrina looked appalled. "Father!"

I chuckled. "It's alright. I'll do that, Regis. Goodnight."

We left the mansion and began walking back to my – err, _our -_ farmhouse. We weren't just walking home, though. We were walking towards the start of a new life.

The very thought made me smile.

**A/N: Pretty short, but I wanted it to be that way.**


	25. Change of Heart

_22: Change of Heart _

Two and a half seasons. That's how long it's been since the wedding. Time went by faster than I would think possible.

Our ranch was flourishing – Mirabelle had recently started selling me sheep, so I had two of them now – Rusty and Thyme. I still had six chickens that Woody protected fiercely, and I'd gotten a lot better at horseback riding.

Spirit was actually quite mellow when I calmed myself and took control. I could often be seen riding around the Island, doing whatever needed to be done that day. I'd planted a few trees last spring.

The very first one died, which made me sad. But Chen had told me what I'd done wrong, so now I had three healthy apple saplings that would be grown by the end of the year. The quality in my crops rose and my knowledge about them rose, and I often won the end-of-the-season crop festival.

Felicia always awarded me with the generous amount of prize money proudly. My relationship with all the animals was very good, and I took good care of them, so I won the animal festivals, too.

Taro would sometimes approach me randomly and compliment me on all the things I'd accomplished. "You've become a great rancher," he'd said, "Just like I was, when I was younger."

His praise and approval meant a lot to me. I told him so, and he smiled widely. I didn't get exhausted as quickly now that Vaughn was around constantly to help me with things. I hired Mark occasionally to do work for us, as he was still on the Island.

"I'm really fond of this place," he'd said, "I'm not sure if I can leave it just yet."

Everything was working out beautifully. Everything was the way it was supposed to be. I was so happy.

"Chelsea!" Julia burst into my house without knocking.

Startled, I almost dropped my mug of early-morning coffee when I stumbled back. It was Wednesday, unfortunately, so Vaughn wasn't around.

"Hi, Julia," I said, a bit annoyed at her sudden appearance.

"I have news." Her smile was huge.

"Oh?" I asked.

She held up a blue feather, identical to the one I'd received three and a half seasons ago. Mine was pressed between the pages of my favorite book – I cherished it.

"I _told_ you he could do it." Julia's tone was smug.

I put down the coffee and went over to hug her tightly. "I'm so happy for you. We're going to go the city and do everything for you that you did for me. When should we go?"

She shrugged. "I don't know – we're not having the wedding for three weeks. Elliot's got a few things to take care of back home." She made a face.

"How did he ask?" I wanted to know, honestly curious. I never thought Elliot would have the guts to ask – if anything, _she'd _be asking _him. _

"He was acting really nervous all day. I kept asking him what was wrong, but he wouldn't say. I asked him for the fourth time a while ago, and he just blurted it out. 'Julia, marry me'. I was shocked." She laughed.

"This is great." I said enthusiastically.

"Yes!" Julia agreed.

I put off my morning chores for a bit while we celebrated briefly. She left after a while, though – she had to go tell Lanna, Sabrina and Natalie.

***

"So guess what?" I asked.

Vaughn sprawled out on the couch and glanced up at me. "What?"

"Julie and Elliot are getting married in three weeks," I said brightly.

He smirked. "Really? Didn't think he'd ask."

"I didn't either. But I'm so happy for them. I wonder when Natalie and Lanna with get married . . ." I trailed off.

He shrugged and pulled off his gloves.

"I missed you yesterday," I told him.

He looked up me lovingly. "I did, too."

I turned, intending to walk to the kitchen. But when I was halfway there, my stomach suddenly twisted violently. Covering my mouth, I whirled and rushed to the bathroom, praying I would make it.

Vaughn held my hair back for me, his expression worried. "You alright?"

"Yeah," I said when it was over. I rinsed out my mouth. "I was just fine a second ago." The whole thing was weird – I'd felt perfectly normal, but then all of a sudden I had to throw up.

"Maybe Dr. Trent should look at you," Vaughn said anxiously.

"No – he's not even on the Island."

"We have a phone," he insisted.

"I don't want to bother him. Really, I feel fine."

He didn't look convinced.

***

But over the course of the next week, I didn't really feel fine at all. It seemed like I got tired a lot easier; I'd finish work for one day and then pass out on the bed without saying a word to Vaughn; I didn't have the energy.

He commented one day that I looked really pale and that I should see the doctor.

"No," I snapped, "I don't want to." Along with the constant exhaustion, I had to admit I was a little moody, too. I snapped harshly at anyone who dared to ask me a question.

Vaughn was irritated with me for it at first, but then he only got more worried, because being rude all the time simply wasn't me.

"I want you to see the doctor," He said with finality in his voice while we ate at the table one night.

"No," I all but snarled.

"Yes," he argued stubbornly.

I stormed off to the bathroom and slammed the door. The same feeling hit my stomach, and I turned to the toilet, thankful I had been in this room when it happened. The next day it was raining heavily, so thankfully I didn't have to water any of the crops, but Vaughn and I still tended to the animals.

When we got back into the house in the early afternoon, I was very tired. But I resented it; I didn't _want_ to be tired. I'd barely done any work – just some brushing, milking and feeding. That did take a bit of energy, but certainly not all of it.

"I'm going to the mine today," I said, almost defiantly, pulling my hammer out of the tool box.

"No," Vaughn said, pulling it out of my hands and putting it back. "You're not well. I don't want you doing anything strenuous."

"I'm _fine._" I was sick of telling him.

This was the first time since we'd been married that I was truly annoyed with him. He shook his head, and held me very tightly when we went to sleep that night.

***

I woke up at ten in the morning the next day.

Ten. In. The. Morning.

I hadn't slept that late in a long time. But why hadn't the alarm gone off? Vaughn was sitting at the table, eating what I presumed to be cold porridge.

I sat up in bed and blinked. "Why didn't the alarm go off?" I asked.

"I switched it off before it could blare," he replied simply, "The morning chores are done. Stay in bed. I've called the doctor – he should be here at any time."

"I _told_ you . . ." His glare made me purse my lips.

He got up and cupped my face. "I want to be sure."

There was a light knock at the door before Denny walked in, smiling widely. "Morning," he said.

His eyes fell upon me and his smile faded. "You okay, Chelsea? You look kind of pale."

"I'm alright," I sighed, "But I'm supposed to see a doctor today."

"Oh." Denny frowned. "Is everything okay?"

"Yes," I assured him.

Denny looked at Vaughn. "I was going to ask if you wanted to hang out today. But I guess now's not the best time . . ."

"No, he should go with you," I encouraged.

Vaughn shook his head. "No, I'll stay here with you."

"Please go. Have fun. Take a break – you work too hard." I smiled up at him. "And when you get back, I'll yell at you for making me see the doctor when there's nothing wrong with me. Okay?"

He stroked my cheek. "Alright," he agreed reluctantly, "I won't be long."

Denny hugged me once before they left. "Hopefully you're okay, Chelsea," the fisherman said, "I kind of like you."

I pushed him away. "Go on."

They left after that, and I lay back on the pillow, still tired, even after all my rest. Dr. Trent arrived just minutes after Vaughn and Denny had left. The door was open, so he came right in with a bag in his hand.

"Hey, Chelsea," Dr. Eye-Candy said, smiling nicely.

"Hi, Dr. Trent. I'm fine – Vaughn's just paranoid," I said.

"It's always good to be sure. Now, tell me what's wrong."

I told him about my puking episodes, and my exhaustion. "It's horrible," I complained, "Maybe I'm getting the flu."

Dr. Trent pursed his lips and looked deep in thought. "Um . . . maybe," he agreed.

He went through a basic routine – listening to my heart, checking my ears, my throat. "You look perfectly healthy," Dr. Trent said.

"I thought so," I replied smugly. "But then . . . that doesn't explain my discomfort."

Dr. Trent bit his lip and sat down next to me. "Well, Chelsea, have you considered that you might be, um . . . pregnant?"

I gaped at him for several minutes. "Um . . . err . . . no. I mean . . ." I trailed off stupidly. "I . . . no. I'm pretty sure I'm not."

"Why not?" Trent asked.

I blushed and fidgeted. I'd had many passionate nights with Vaughn, it was true, but I was on the pill. In the early days of our marriage, I'd asked him about kids. My brain zoned out for a minute as I remembered.

***

_It was late in the evening, and Vaughn and I were walking into the farmhouse, both quite exhausted. _

"_A Festival and chores are a lot to deal with in one day," I said, flopping down on the bed. _

_He started to make dinner for us, and, though I wanted to help him, I was simply too tired. When he was done, I hobbled to the table and sat down. _

"_Thanks." My smile was huge. _

_He smiled back slightly and nodded once. Even now, after all that had happened, he was still quiet, but definitely not as much as he had been before. _

"_I went fishing with Lanna yesterday," I told him, "But she talked a lot, so it was hard to concentrate." _

"_And Denny doesn't talk a lot?" he asked. _

_I shrugged. "Sure, but that's . . . different. Lanna is wondering when Denny's going to propose to her." _

"_He hasn't said anything about it," Vaughn said, as he lifted his fork. _

_The stew he had made was wonderful, though it would be ever greater if it had carrots. I smiled slightly to myself and focused back on the conversation. _

"_Really? Lanna seemed so sure. She was going on about the season she wants to get married in, the specific dress she'll have – one from the shop I went to, actually – and even about _kids. _She said that with her and Denny's fishing skills combined, the kid would be the greatest fisher in the world. She's probably right," I mused. _

"_Probably," he agreed. _

"_I wonder what Natalie's and Pierre's kid would be like," I said, snickering. _

"_An obsessed chef with attitude." Vaughn chuckled, too._

_It was quiet for a moment while I pondered something. I could imagine quite vividly the other couples on the Island having children eventually – which made me think of myself as well. I hadn't even asked him about it at all. _

_I had to admit, the idea of a little baby, part of Vaughn, part of me, was heartwarming. But we were both so young. I wasn't quite ready for that now. In the future, though . . . _

"_Well," I joked softly after a moment, "With your love of animals and my love for planting and harvesting crops, our kid would be the ultimate rancher."_

_He almost choked on his food._

_I froze, alarmed, while he coughed and then composed himself. When his eyes met mine, they were both uncomfortable and nervous. _

"_What?" I asked, hurt at his reaction. _

"_I don't – I mean, I don't think that, err . . ." He trailed off. _

"_What?" I said again, annoyed now. "You don't want kids?" _

_He stood up and walked into the kitchen, placing his bowl in the sink. When he turned to face me again, his expression was wary. "I – I don't think so. My childhood was so screwed up, and I don't know anything about being a . . . father. I wouldn't want the kid to be just as messed up."_

_I frowned. "He – or she – wouldn't be, you know that. What happened to you happened because both of your parents were totally irresponsible. It wouldn't be like that with us." _

_He was suddenly annoyed. "Why does this all of a sudden matter to you?" _

_I shrugged. "I don't know, Vaughn. It's not like I want a kid right now. But maybe, in the future . . . and it makes me sad that you don't want the same thing."_

_He sighed, remorseful. He walked over and pulled me up into his arms. "I'm sorry. I just . . . don't want that." _

_Pain twisted in my heart, but I didn't let him see; I kept my eyes on the floor. "You'll change your mind," I murmured, trying to sound confident. _

"_I won't. Maybe you can change yours."His tone held finality, and it was impossible to doubt him. _

_I broke away from him and walked to the closet, looking for my jacket. _

"_Where are you going?" he wanted to know. _

"_Out," I said, my voice sharper than I meant it to be. I left the house and went for a walk._

_***_

"Chelsea?" Dr. Trent snapped his fingers in front of my face, slightly irritated.

I came back to the present and looked at him apologetically. "Oh, sorry."

He shrugged. "It's alright. But anyway, I'm pretty sure you're pregnant."

I bit my lip. "How sure?"

"Ninety nine percent," he said, smiling.

My stomach began twisting in knots, and a million thoughts came rushing into my head. One stood out from all the others.

"I can't be," I said, "I take a pill."

"You must have missed a day or two." Dr. Trent shrugged, and noticed my panicked expression. "Are you alright?"

"Yes," I managed to say.

After I'd spoken to Vaughn about this issue, I'd sort of resigned to the fact that I wouldn't ever have a kid. And I hadn't missed a few days intentionally – I thought for a long moment, trying to decipher exactly when it had been. Then I suddenly remembered. The very first day of summer, there was an awful storm.

It wasn't big enough to be called a hurricane, but it was definitely the kind you shouldn't go out in. We'd been passionate for most of the day, and, come to think of it, I _hadn't_ taken the pill that day . . . and a few afterward.

My mouth opened and I tried to speak, but no sound came out. Trent looked concerned. "Are you sure you're alright?"

"I'm okay," I lied.

I wasn't coherent in my mind – the thoughts were coming too fast. On one hand, I was joyous. The picture in my head would come true.

A tiny little baby.

One that I would watch grow older with the years passing. One I would love and treasure. On the other hand . . . I swallowed heavily. What would Vaughn say? Would he be angry with me, thinking I missed the pill on purpose?

"Chelsea, honestly, you look like a ghost," Trent said, still concerned, "Maybe you should lie down."

I did, and I felt a little better.

"Now, what exactly is wrong? This is generally wonderful news for married couples." Trent smiled, his eyes gleaming.

"It _is_ great," I replied truthfully, "It's just . . . I don't know what Vaughn will think."

"Surely he'll be glad," Trent said, his voice warm.

"I'm not sure," I sighed.

"Well, if he doesn't like it, he'll just have to get used to the idea eventually." Trent nodded to himself and stood. "There are a lot of uncomfortable symptoms that come along with pregnancy, you know. Absentmindedness, for example."

"_Great_," I muttered sarcastically.

He chuckled. "I'm just letting you know. Would you like to come back to the city hospital when the time comes?"

I made a face. I wanted the baby to be born _here_, on his/her home. "No," I said, "I'll call you."

He nodded. "I'll come as quickly as I am able."

"Are you staying here for a while? Or did you just come to the Island for me?" I asked, hoping it wasn't the latter.

"Just for you." He smiled. "But I might stick around for a few days. I want to see the Harvest Goddess' pond again. I have to get back soon, though. Work, you know." He began walking to the door. "Good luck" was the last words he said before leaving.

I gnawed on my lip for the next hour and thought about things. Whether Vaughn was alright with it or not, it was going to happen, I promised myself.

Though it would preferable if he _was _okay. It was about noon when Denny and Vaughn walked into the house, smiling about something.

"Hey, Chelsea," Denny said, "What'd the doc say?"

I wanted Vaughn to know before anyone else, for reasons unknown to myself, so I just shrugged and answered, "That I'm fine."

Vaughn raised an eyebrow but didn't comment.

Denny left after we fed him lunch, and ate ourselves. "See you guys. I'm going to go find Lanna."

When we were alone, I sat down on the bed and stared out the window. Hesitantly, he came over and sat down next to me.

"So what did Trent _really_ say?" His voice was nervous.

"How do you know I was lying?" I wasn't sure why I said that; stalling maybe.

"I just do. Now, what did he say? Are your okay?" He grabbed my chin and forced me to look at him.

I felt a little bad for keeping him in suspense. Best to get it over with. "He said I was perfectly healthy," I began.

He nodded, seeing the truth in my eyes. "But . . .?"

"But nothing," I snapped, "I am fine."

"Then why the puking episodes?" he asked, annoyed.

I blurted out the words without another thought. "He said that I'm pregnant."

He froze for a second, and then his mouth opened, but no words came out. He leaned back, looking somewhat dazed.

"But you're taking a pill," he said.

"I missed a few days," I muttered, "The day of that big storm at the beginning of this season, and a couple after that."

He was silent for a moment as he remembered. "Not the best day to forget," he murmured quietly after a second.

"It wasn't on purpose," I told him, "So don't think it was."

"I believe you." He nodded slowly. "Was Trent positive?"

"Ninety nine percent," I said, still studying him carefully.

"Oh," he breathed, "Well, that would explain the irritability and the puking."

"Are you . . . mad?" I had to know.

When his eyes met mine, they were still dazed. "Strangely . . . no. I mean, I thought I would be . . . if this ever happened. But I know how much it means to you. And besides, not much can be done about it now, right?" He smiled slightly.

"One thing could be done," I muttered, "But I'd never do it."

"I know you wouldn't. So if you're happy . . . then I'm happy."

My heart inflated, and my gaze turned loving. "Really?" I asked. "Yes. I'm still . . . um, nervous, though." Vaughn swallowed heavily.

"I am, too. But everything will be fine, you'll see." My arms wrapped around him, and he bent his head to kiss me.

My fingers braided into his hair, and he grunted, clutching me closer. I pushed him back on the bed and began kissing his throat.

"I love you," he sighed.

"I love you, too," I murmured back between the kisses. I had worried for nothing.

Everything was going to be okay. I loved him, he loved me, and we were going to have a baby together.

**A/N: I never really thought that Vaughn was a kid-type of person. Do you think he is? **


	26. Family

_23: Family _

Dr. Trent was right.

There _were_ lots of unpleasant symptoms that came along with pregnancy. Aside from the puking, the absentmindedness and the exhaustion were the hardest to deal with. No, scratch that. _Vaughn _was the most difficult to deal with.

It was like I was handicapped and didn't have the power to do anything on my own. Vaughn wanted me to do basically _nothing_ during this time period. I barely got out of the house, and when I did, I wasn't allowed to work.

He hired Mark to come and work on our farm full time so he didn't collapse from exhaustion every day.

It had been two weeks, and I was getting annoyed. "Vaughn, Julia's getting married soon. I promised I'd go to the city with her and Nat, Lanna and Sabrina to get a dress, like they did for me when I married you. I have to go."

He shook his head. "No – you don't need to be traveling now."

"You're being unreasonable," I snapped, "I'm going and that is that."

He fought with me about it for a long time, and eventually I started crying about it (I was finding it harder to control my emotions lately). He broke down and finally agreed not to chain me to the house, but he clearly wasn't happy about it.

I went to the city the next day, and the trip was much the same, only Julia was the one to buy her dress. She gushed about how happy she was and how she couldn't wait to spend forever with Elliot.

Natalie was biting her lip most of the time we were there, desperately trying not to laugh and make comments about her brother. She knew it wasn't the time, and I had to admire her self-control.

I smirked.

Vaughn was waiting for me at the dock when we got back, his expression anxious. He took me back to the house quickly and gave me dinner.

"I'm going to need a bit more freedom around here," I told him as I ate.

"What do you mean?" Vaughn asked.

"I'm not going to spend every waking second in this house. I want to go out. I promise I'll come back if I get tired."

He sighed. "Alright. Promise me, though, that you won't go anywhere near that mine."

"I promise," I said solemnly, "I have no desire to fall down a deep pit."

He nodded and then kissed me.

***

I made two pretty major errors in the next few weeks. After Julia's marvelous yet simple wedding, Vaughn was pretty lenient about my going out for long periods of time. He even let me help him and Mark with the farm work occasionally, though what I did was very minimal.

One day, as I was passing the field, I noticed that there were less than half the crops I usually planted. Frowning, I asked my husband about it when I walked into the barn. He chuckled nervously and shrugged.

"You know I don't really care for vegetables," he grumbled.

"Well I do," I said, "So, if I'm going to work – and I will – let me plant everything I want."

He frowned. "Not too much, Chelsea – yard work is exhausting."

But I saw that he was happy to no longer be looking after vegetables – he honestly didn't like most of them. So I was content taking care of my field now. I had to admit, it was tiring, and I often had to stop and rest, but it was nice to be getting something done.

I did miss the animals, though, so one day I told Vaughn I wanted to look after them.

"They'll be fine," I promised, "Go water my crops."

Mark was there, too; he pursed his lips. "Are you sure, Chelsea? The work is pretty hard."

"Yes," Vaughn said sharply, "Very hard."

"I want to," I said. "Please."

The two men sighed, but reluctantly agreed. "Just one day," Vaughn insisted before he turned to walk away.

I did everything I was supposed to – fed, milked, sheared, and brushed. I let the chickens out because the sun was shining brightly in the sky. All in all, it was a very lovely day. My first major error happened then, though.

At dusk, I began taking the chickens back into their coop. By this time, though, I was truly exhausted, and I didn't bother to count them before I went back to the farmhouse – I was pretty sure they were all there.

I slept like a rock that night, but when I woke up and went outside, Vaughn was grim. Mark was nowhere to be seen – in the stable, probably. He was fondest of Spirit – he loved horses.

Vaughn was just coming out of the barn when I saw his cold expression.

"What is it?" I asked worriedly.

His eyes met mine, and they were bleak. "You forgot something yesterday," he began.

I blinked, trying to understand what he meant. "What was it?" I finally, dread beginning to claw up my throat.

He didn't answer; he simply led me to the chicken pen.

I gasped and placed a hand over my heart. The actual chicken wasn't there, but blood and feathers were everywhere, covering most of the ground. "Oh," I managed to say.

"Woody was in the house last night," Vaughn said, still bleak, "So he couldn't have prevented this."

"Do you . . . do you have any idea which one it was?"I asked.

He shrugged. It was difficult to tell chickens apart after they were fully grown – only Junior was decipherable, because her feathers were pitch-black.

"No." Vaughn sighed.

I averted my eyes, unable to look at the horror I had caused. "I . . . I'm sorry, Vaughn," I breathed, "I should have been more thorough. Normally I am – I'm just so crazy right now." Tears were beginning to gather in my eyes, and my voice was thick.

He could see that. With another heavy sigh, he wrapped an arm around my shoulder. "I know. Mark and I will look after the animals for a while, alright? Stick to the fields. I can't stand it anyway."

I nodded slowly, still feeling horrid. Vaughn was a bit distant with me the rest of the day, and I didn't blame him. I was disgusted with myself.

I turned and walked back to the farmhouse, eyeing the ground the whole way there.

***

My second serious error wasn't as heartbreaking, but a bit damaging financially. Near the beginning of fall, Bessie somehow developed a bit of a cold.

"It was that one day we were over at Mirabelle's," Vaughn told me when I asked. "It started raining and we had to hurry back to take all the animals inside, remember?"

I really needed to get out, so I volunteered to go and buy medicine for Bessie. Mirabelle was nowhere to be seen when I got in, so I just grabbed a bottle for myself and left the money on the table.

Vaughn wasn't in the barn when I got back, so I took the liberty of giving Bessie the medicine myself. Over the course of the next few days, Bessie's cold seemed to get better, but she was acting strangely as well. Vaughn recognized the signs before I did and asked me to show him the bottle of medicine.

I'd gotten it from the tool box and showed him.

"Chelsea," Vaughn said, staring intently at the bottle. "This isn't medicine – it's cow miracle."

I'd snatched the bottle from his hands, denying it. But the label clearly stated he was right.

"We have to expand the barn before we can put anymore animals – there are already five," he said.

I bit my lip, knowing that we needed the money right now. We were going to expand the house again, and buy a crib. I wasn't sure we could afford a crib, and expanding _two_ buildings right now. "Maybe Gannon can squeeze one more in," I murmured desperately.

Vaughn shook his head. "It'd get too claustrophobic. We can hire Mark to work for longer periods of time and I can work a few extra days in the city for money."

"I don't want you to do that," I said.

"Then what do you suggest?" He snapped harshly.

I recoiled and frowned. "Fine," I snapped back.

So now Vaughn was gone Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. My stomach was beginning to feel bulky, and I got lonely on those three days, and guilty for my mistakes. I vented to Natalie and Julia often, and though they couldn't emphasize, they were compassionate (albeit a little sarcastic).

The baby was supposed to come around the end of fall, and as that day got closer and closer, I began to get very nervous. With Vaughn working the extra days, and the profits we got from our farm, we were able to afford everything we needed.

Gannon expanded the barn and added a feeder, and Bessie was a happy, pregnant cow. I stood on the dock now, on Saturday morning, waiting for Vaughn's boat to come into view. When we'd gotten everything, he'd promised he'd go back to Wednesdays only.

Three days a week was a bit much. When he stepped onto the dock, he smiled and kissed me, like always. Back at the farmhouse, I felt the need to apologize.

"I'm sorry for being so ditzy lately – I'm even annoying myself," I sighed, lying next to him in the dark.

He kissed my forehead and stroked my arm. "It's alright. Everything will go back to normal soon."

"Have you thought about names at all?" I asked.

"Um, no. What did you have in mind?"

"I like the name Alex for a boy and Tessa for a girl," I whispered, smiling.

"Sounds good to me." I felt him shrug.

"You don't have an opinion at all?" I frowned.

"Nope. As long as you don't name it something awful, I'm fine with anything," he said indifferently.

"Are you excited? The date's coming soon," I said, swallowing thickly.

"I'm more anxious than nervous. But everything will be . . . fine," he whispered, sounding like he was trying to convince himself rather than me.

"What do you think he or she will look like?" I wondered.

"Us."

I rolled my eyes. "Obviously."

"Hopefully more like you," Vaughn said, sounding a bit irritated, "I always got comments growing up. If some idiot wasn't talking about my hair, it was another imbecile asking about my eyes."

"I think you look very distinguished," I snickered.

"Old," he corrected.

"Hot," I amended.

He snorted, and began kissing my throat.

***

About a week before the baby was due, Dr. Trent came to our house and gave us his cell phone number.

"So you can call me wherever I am," he explained.

Vaughn was being ever stricter with me at this point; if I moved wrong he was there, complaining.

"You're getting really irritating," I snapped, my hands folded on my very-large stomach.

"You're being very stubborn," he said.

I could understand his reasons, though. Still, I hated being confined, not getting anything done, even if the smallest things drained my energy now. By the end of a particularly tense day, I was sick of arguing, so I hobbled over to him and held his hand.

"We're going to have a baby soon," I said in a sweet voice.

He smiled and nodded once. "Yes, we are."

**Julia's POV **

Elliot was out helping with shipping matters, Mom was running the shop, and I was bored. I cleaned up the kitchen until it was spotless, but I was soon out of things to do. I'd go and ask Chelsea if she wanted to hang out – except she was hugely pregnant and the smallest about of exercise wore her out.

I knew that Vaughn had been working very, very hard in the past season, especially after having to buy so much at one time. I smiled to myself when I thought of my cousin and his wife. I was still so happy for them.

I walked over to the coat rack and pulled my stylish light summer jacket.

"Going out, Julia?" Mom asked.

"Yeah, I think I'll go the beach. Maybe Lanna will want to hang out." But just as my fingers touched the doorknob, Mom's phone rang, a shrill, unpleasant noise.

I jumped, unaccustomed to it; the phone _never _rang. Mom seemed to be thinking the same things as me, because she pursed her lips and looked concerned.

"Who could that be?" I wondered aloud, hurrying back into the kitchen, where the black phone rested on the counter. I snatched it off the charger, pressed the Talk button, and held it to my ear.

"Hello?"

"Julia? Julia, it's Vaughn," my cousin said. His voice was frantic and nervous and scared.

"Hey. What's wrong?" I asked, alerted by his tone.

"Chelsea's going to – to have the baby soon," Vaughn spluttered.

"Yes," I agreed, "Any day now."

"No," he snapped, "No, I mean _right now._"

I blinked, and my heart began to race. "Now? As we speak? Have you called Dr. Trent?" My voice had changed to match his, worried and anxious.

Mom walked over to where I stood, and put a hand on my shoulder. "Julia? Who is it? What's wrong?"

I ignored my mother for the moment and waited for Vaughn's reply.

"Of course," he all but snarled, "What else would I do? Get Mirabelle and come over – Dr. Trent'll need help." In the background, I heard one sharp cry from Chelsea before the line went dead.

Panicked, I put the phone down and whirled to face Mom. "Mom, we need to get to Chelsea and Vaughn's house," I managed to say.

"It's time?" she asked, her voice tinged with nervousness.

"Yeah – let's go."

We raced up to the ranch, ignoring Natalie and Pierre when they called out to us, asking what was wrong. Vaughn was standing outside the door of the farmhouse, looking pale and pacing wildly. Mom wasted no time greeting her nephew; she yanked the door open, went inside, and slammed it behind her.

I wanted to go in to, at least to hold Chelsea's hand, but Vaughn looked like he was going crazy, so I decided it was probably best if I stayed here and comforted him.

"Stop pacing," I said, a little irritated, "You've known about this forever. Stop freaking out."

My cousin whirled to face me, jabbing his index finger at me with an angry expression. "When _you_ have a kid, we'll see how well _Elliot _stays calm even though he's had time to _prepare,_" Vaughn snapped.

"He will remain calm," I argued back, though I knew that statement was probably untrue.

Vaughn snorted and muttered "we'll see" under his breath.

Then he went back to pacing. Even through the door, I could still hear a few shrieks of anguish. Vaughn winced and bit his lip. I made a few more attempts to soothe him, but he only got angry and growled things at me.

Eventually I gave up and leaned against the wall, waiting for it to be over with. As evening drew closer, the temperature got even higher, and soon sweat was beading at my temples. Vaughn didn't seem to notice the heat it all, though I didn't know how he could stand it in his heavy clothes.

After what seemed like a very long time, a tired-looking Dr. Trent came out of the house.

"What happened? Is Chelsea alright?" Vaughn asked hurriedly.

Trent smiled slightly and nodded once. "Everything went perfectly well – Mirabelle did everything she could to help me. Chelsea and the baby are fine."

"Is it a boy or a girl?" I asked curiously, while profound relief spread across Vaughn's face.

Trent opened the door and gestured for us to go in.

"It's a boy."

**Chelsea's POV**

I was exceedingly tired.

The whole ordeal was so incredibly painful, without all those heavy drugs some people used. My eyelids were heavy, and I was very sore. The baby was wrapped in a little blue blanket, and Mirabelle was cooing to him softly.

"Tiny baby," she whispered, "You're so sweet. What will your name be, I wonder?"

Trent had informed me that it was a baby boy, so I already knew the name he would have. Vaughn and Julia hurried into the room, Julia looking relieved, Vaughn still slightly anxious.

As soon as I knew the baby was coming, Vaughn kind of freaked out. He could barely dial the phone for Trent and Mirabelle. I'd expected him to be a little mellower; he was so indifferent most of the time.

But he couldn't be blamed for it, I supposed.

"Chelsea," Vaughn breathed, his hands on my face, "Are you okay?"

"Not really," I sighed, "I'm tired, and I hurt."

"You have a little boy," Julia said. She stood next to her mother and began whispering endearments to the baby.

"Yes," I agreed, my tone saturated with disbelief. I was a mother. Vaughn was a father.

How odd.

"Want to hold the little guy?" Mirabelle asked, walking over to put him in my arms.

"Just for a little while," Trent murmured, "and then she'll need to rest. The baby will be hungry soon."

My baby was so beautiful. His little nose and lips looked like a replica of mine. I cooed lovingly to him, my heart warming.

"Are you still alright with the names we talked about before?" I whispered to my husband.

Vaughn nodded. "They're fine." He stared down at the baby, love and disbelief in his eyes.

"What name was that?" Trent asked.

"Alex," I said.

The baby opened his mouth to yawn. Oh, yes. For some reason, he definitely looked like an Alex to me.

"Alex it is then." Dr. Trent nodded once, and smiled at the baby.

For a just a few seconds, Alex opened his eyes and stared up at us, his little face scrunching up slightly.

"Vaughn," I breathed, "He has your eyes."

Alex's eyes were an exact copy of his father's; wide, amethyst, and beautiful.

"Poor kid," Vaughn muttered.

"Want to hold him?" I asked, trying to find the energy to lift my arms. I was so tired.

Vaughn blinked and looked unsure for a minute. "Yes," he finally said. He cradled Alex's head in the crook of his elbow and smiled gently. Alex blinked up at him silently.

"He likes you, Vaughn," Julia snickered.

"Of course he likes him," Mirabelle said, "Vaughn is Alex's father."

Vaughn's expression was so disbelieving it was almost funny. "Yeah . . . yeah, I guess so. The idea is just so weird to me."

"Me too," I whispered.

He looked down at me and smiled. "You did well, Chelsea."

"Gee, _thanks_," I murmured sarcastically, "Next time, you're having the baby."

"Next time?" His silver eyebrow rose, but he didn't really look panicked, just smug.

I stared at the baby lovingly. Alex hiccupped.

"Yes, next time. I'm going to have lots of pretty babies with you," I said.

Vaughn smiled slightly.

I looked up at Julia, smirking. "It's your turn now."

Julia blushed and looked down. "Oh . . . I don't know," she chuckled nervously.

"You should probably rest now, Chelsea," Trent insisted softly.

I nodded, my eyes beginning to close.

"Thanks for your help, Mirabelle," I heard him say.

"You're welcome. Vaughn, do you need us to stay and help with the baby?" Mirabelle asked.

"No, I don't think so."

"Wake her up when he gets fussy," Trent said, "He'll be hungry."

Dimly, I heard footsteps headed out the door, and Dr. Trent's quiet goodbye. I was only half-conscious when I felt Vaughn's lips at my ear.

"I love you," he whispered.

I smiled sleepily. "I love you too."

**A/N: Yay! They have a baby. 3 **


	27. Epilouge

_Epilogue _

"Mommy, can I go play with Liz and Jack?" Alex asked me as I was harvesting my crops – tomatoes and corn.

"Yes – just be back before dinner," I replied, beginning to put the crops in the shipping box.

"Alex," I called to him as he started walking away.

He turned back to me, his face expectant. Alex was outgoing, open and talkative; everything Vaughn wasn't. As time when on, it became apparent that his personality mirrored mine to perfection; Alex was also fairly optimistic, witty and thoughtful.

His hair was the same shade of brown as mine, and his eyes were still the exact same as his father's.

"Would you take your sister with you? She'd like to see Julia's new baby," I said.

Alex made a face. "But Tessa doesn't play our games right," he sighed dramatically, "She always messes them up."

"Be nice," I scolded gently, "Go on and take her along."

He sighed again, but hurried back to the house, where Tessa was helping Vaughn make lunch. Tessa was born two years after Alex – she was five now, and the exact opposite of her brother and myself.

Instead, she was exactly like Vaughn; quiet, reserved and secretive. But she was also quite happy; she adored farming and all the animals we kept. Alex liked the ranch, too, but he was showing a lot of interest in carpeting and building, like Gannon.

Tessa's hair was sleek and silver and her eyes were a bright crystal blue, like mine. Through she was so young, her quietness and her hair made her look very smart. And indeed she was. Both of my children were.

Julia and Elliot had a baby not just a few seasons after Alex was born, and his name was Jack. Jack was very sweet and helpful; a little clumsy, but very reliable. He had light blonde hair and muddy hazel eyes, and he often helped Chen and Charlie with the shop.

Charlie and Eliza were both fifteen now, and they were 'dating'. Eliza often spoke about leaving the Island to put her beauty to better use, and Charlie insisted he would follow her anywhere, though it hurt Chen, knowing his son might not take over the shop. It was too soon to tell anyway.

Aside from Jack, Elliot and Julia just had another baby a few weeks ago, a boy they named Derek.

"I'm going to have a girl next time if it kills me," Julia had said to me after the birth; she wanted a daughter very much, and I couldn't blame her. I was fairly close with Tessa, and I couldn't imagine life without her.

Natalie and Pierre got married a year after Alex was born, and had a baby soon afterwards; her name was Liz. She was six years old now, with deep red hair and hazel eyes. She looked almost exactly like Natalie, and was a bit tomboyish as well. She shared her father's passion for cooking, and was always learning new trade secrets from Pierre; she helped him judge in the yearly Cooking Festival.

Lanna and Denny were the last to marry, two years after Alex's birth, and their little girl, Samantha, was only five. She could often be seen playing with Tessa at the beach. Her hair was dark and curly like Denny's, though she had Lanna's eyes and passion for singing. She liked to fish, too, but not as strongly as her parents.

And Sabrina . . . she had finally started something with Mark a few seasons after Vaughn and I got married. Regis disapproved at first, and he still does, but after a while he seemed to realize that his daughter wanted to marry for love and not anything else. Sabrina and Mark were semi-serious now, I though, so perhaps they too, would get engaged someday.

So much had changed in the past seven years, including myself. I was more mature in some respects, I thought. I should be, though, now that was closer to thirty than twenty.

Vaughn was thirty two now, and though the age annoyed him a bit, he looked and acted just the same as always. He came out of the house just then and gestured for me to come over.

When I reached him, he kissed me deeply and then said, "Lunch is ready."

"Alex left to find Liz and Jack," I murmured, "He'll probably eat with Elliot and Julia."

Tessa was sitting at the table when we came in, reading some sort of book about lions. She glanced up and smiled at me.

"Hi, Mommy," she said quietly.

I kissed her forehead. "Hi, Tessa."

She blushed slightly and continued to read. "I asked your brother to bring you along with him . . . Didn't you want to see Derek?" I asked.

Tessa shrugged. "Yeah, but I didn't feel like being around Liz and Jack today. They talk too much."

Alex came back during dinner that night, and I scolded him for being late.

"Sorry," my son said, "Liz was lecturing us on how to make some kind of dish involving chestnuts, and I couldn't get away." He sat down and began stuffing his face.

"The cooking festival is coming up soon. Are you going to enter, Mommy?" Tessa asked.

I made a face. "You know I can't cook. Maybe your father should attempt to win a festival this time," I said, raising at eyebrow at him.

Vaughn snorted, but didn't comment.

"C'mon, Daddy, your cooking isn't that bad," Tessa said, her voice encouraging. Tess truly adored her father, wanted nothing more than to be just like him.

"Have you s_een_ what he makes? Half the time I'm afraid it's going to eat _me_," Alex laughed.

I rolled my eyes. "Well, whether or not we enter, we'll go for moral support."

"Liz says she's going to judge really harsh this year; she thinks Pierre picked a bad winner last year," Alex said fondly.

"Liz is _too_ harsh," Tessa complained, "I made some sugar cookies a while ago and she did nothing but criticize when I offered to share them."

"Well, they _were_ gross," Alex said, grimacing.

"Shut up," Tessa snapped.

"Hush now," I scolded.

The evening continued without much incident after that, and then we all went to sleep.

***

"When's it going to _start?_" Alex complained.

We stood in the Meadow with the other Islands, and a few tourists, who were also participating in the competition.

"I hope Julia wins best desert this year," Tessa said, putting absently on her silvery hair, "She was so close last time."

"Regis won best appetizer last year," Alex remembered, and then shuddered. He'd always been a little frightened of 'Dracula'.

"Attention, ladies and gentlemen, the competition is about to begin," Pierre called over the chatter of the crowd.

The competition proceeded as it normally did. A few of the tourists won, but Julia won best desert and Felicia won best main course dish.

After it was over, the tourists immediately dispersed, as they usually did, and the Islanders hung around to socialize and eat the dishes. The sun was shining brilliantly in the sky, and Vaughn and I didn't have any work to do until this evening, so we let Alex and Tessa go play with their friends.

Natalie walked up to us with a wide smile. "Didn't enter, Chelsea?"

"You know I would have lost," I said, smiling.

"Yeah – your cooking sucks," she agreed.

"And yours is so lovely," I snapped.

Natalie had to go then; Liz was picking up some kind of dead lizard thing.

"I would have entered an awesome dish involving fish, but I've been busy teaching Samantha with her fishing skills," Denny said when I approached him.

I rolled my eyes. "Of course. I'm sure that's the reason."

The fisherman made a face at me. "Where's _your_ dish, oh-superior-one?"

"Don't have one," I said bluntly.

Denny snickered. "Didn't think so."

I continued like this, chatting with the other Islanders, until the sun started to go down.

Vaughn nudged me. "We've got to get back – the chickens are outside, and wild dogs like to roam around at night."

I agreed.

Tessa and Alex ran ahead of us as we walked back to our ranch, chasing each other. Absently, I grabbed Vaughn's hand. I began to reflect – again – on my life.

I often did this, because a lot of the time I couldn't believe how lucky I was. I had a successful career, a loving husband, and two wonderful children. The future looked pretty bright right about now.

A wide smile spread across my face.

He noticed. "Why are you so cheerful?" Vaughn teased.

"Lots of reasons. I love you. You love me. I love Alex and Tessa. I love my _life. _I am happy. Aren't you?"

He smiled at me gently. "Yes. I am very happy."

I smiled back and squeezed his hand, and then turned to watch the blazing sun move sink even lower in the sky, so content.

Not many people get everything they want in life, but I did. I truly had everything. This was my wonderful life.

It was great.

It was grand.

It was the beginning of forever.

**The End **

* * *

**A/N: There's my exceedingly short epilogue. I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it. I'd love to do another Vaughn/Chelsea fic, and I'm open for ideas. Thanks for reading**!


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